


Out of Nightmares

by DarkWynn



Series: Dreams and Vows [1]
Category: Rosario + Vampire
Genre: Action/Adventure, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Polyamory, Referenced Non/Con scenes from the manga, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 03:29:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 16
Words: 33,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12572760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkWynn/pseuds/DarkWynn
Summary: New Lesson: Nightmares - When a mythological monster that feeds off of nightmares decides to take over your school, the best course of action is...A. Develop insomnia.B. Push the snooze button on your alarm.C. Show him what nightmares are made of.





	1. Nightmare Ending, Nightmare Beginning

**Prologue**

**_Nightmare Ending, Nightmare Beginning_ **

 

    “Learn your place.”

     As usual, the silence punctuating Moka Akashiya’s trademark coup de grace lasted only so long as it took for the unconscious form of her foe to reach the pinnacle of his skyward arc and then fall limply onto the ground, lying still as a broken toy as his dark blood oozed onto the dusty ground.  It was obvious that the silver-haired vampire had not bothered to restrain herself against this enemy, and had perhaps even ended the battle with even more force than could be considered necessary.  Red eyes narrowed as she stared for a moment at the fallen monster, her fists clenching in rage as she took a step forward towards the body, murderous intent apparent as her sneer bared her fangs.

     An unnatural growl made her draw up short, and she turned her head to stare at her next opponent.  If bloodlust had radiated from her crimson eyes as she had gazed upon the fallen monster, it was now regret that dominated her expression as she turned to face Tsukune Aono.  Her eyes flicked past him to the two still forms beyond him; obviously Mizore and Kurumu had failed in their efforts to restrain him.  She would be alone in this fight, not that she needed any aid.  Tsukune had never been able to rival her power and skill, though at this moment he would likely come close.  Her classmate stared at her, the vertical pupils and crimson irises so different from his usual soft brown eyes, just as the primal hunger in his expression was a far cry from his typical kind smile and warm demeanor.  Once again, he had been consumed by his inner demon, the ghoulish form that she had inadvertently imparted onto him over a year ago in an attempt to save his life from severe injuries he had earned trying to protect her.

     “I don’t suppose I can convince you to surrender.” The ghoul that had been Tsukune said nothing, instead taking a shaky step forward, hands curling into claws.  Moka smiled bitterly, her eyes flicking once again to the still form of Kurumu, the blue-haired succubus that had risked her life over and again for both the vampire and Tsukune.  It was good that she wasn’t conscious, as it would spare her the pain of witnessing the upcoming fight.  No one deserved to see someone they cared about hurt in such a manner, but it was the only way.  Moka saw no way to stop the ghoul, other than hurting him until he could no longer fight.  Even then she would be lucky to restrain him, but she had run out of options.

      Moka’s eyes jerked open as Tsukune’s form seemed to disappear from in front of her.  Instincts screaming at her, she frantically dodged aside as the ghoul attacked from behind, a blow that would have opened her back. ‘So fast!  He’s never-’ The ghoul didn’t pause, lashing at her with several remorseless strikes, each narrowly avoided.  Snarling, Moka took advantage of his lack of defenses, striking with a powerful side kick.  The ghoul had neither chance nor desire to protect itself, and the resulting collision sent him sprawling to the side.  Even as Moka felt relief at taking back control of the fight, a sharp chill traveled up the leg that had struck the ghoul, manifesting as a blast of paralyzing fear as it reached her core.  The vampire dropped to one knee, eyes wide at the unnatural panic.  This had never happened before, and would undoubtedly serve to make an already difficult fight worse.  As she struggled to overcome the fear she heard the ghoul returning to his feet, and forced herself upright.

     In the instant that it took the ghoul to reach her, Moka realized that something had changed.  She had fought Tsukune before, even in his ghoul form and out of control, but he had never been this ferocious.  When she had trained Tsukune to fight using his repressed inner power, he had always been reserved, all but afraid to hurt her, as absurd as that notion was.  Now, he fought with the power he had gained from that training, but without the concern for her safety that he had never been able to overcome.  But that was not the extent of it, not by far.  Dodging one swipe, and then another, she recalled something from the conflict that had led to this fight: an image of the monster she had just defeated holding Tsukune aloft, fingers pressing tightly against the then-human Tsukune’s temples.

     “ _Allow me to show you a true nightmare_.”

     Moka realized that the monster had somehow changed Tsukune, and since she no longer knew what to expect from him she no longer had any choice.  Subduing him quickly and thus brutally was the only path that could guarantee her victory.  Her outer persona, the softer, loving Moka Akashiya., would grieve her friend’s pain, but hopefully she would understand the necessity of what the vampire knew was the only way to end the fight.  Carefully she analyzed the ghoul’s attacks, watching for another opening, intending to end the fight with a single blow.  She felt a surge of triumph as the ghoul overextended himself with a downward swing, leaving himself exposed.  She moved around him, staying out of his vision, and then preparing to leap into the air, where she would-

     Moka had not expected the second swing, a brutal roundhouse that had lost most of its momentum by the time it reached her, but still tore through her school uniform and into her side.

     The vampire desperately flung herself away from him, hand falling to her wound while the other rose to her eyes.  She felt another surge of fear, but this one was more easily understood.  The second the ghoul had struck her, her vision had gone black, leaving her unable to fight back with her full power; no doubt this was another effect of the monster’s attack upon Tsukune.  Thanks to her ability to sense the killing intent of her opponents, she was capable of fending off the ghoul blind for a while, but her concern over the end of the battle grew.  Faint light began to show at the edges of her vision, giving her hope that the unnatural blindness would quickly fade, but still there was the problem of avoiding attacks that-

     Too fast!  The ghoul was suddenly in range, her now-heavily-blurred vision revealing him drawing back for the fatal blow.  She drew back, but felt her heel catch on a stone behind her; the ability to sense killing intent did nothing for her situational awareness, and she had made a fatal error in trusting the uneven ground.  The vampire smiled grimly as she fell back, waiting for the end to come.  It was only justice, that she be destroyed by the boy whose normal existence she had ended with an infusion of her own blood.

     The final strike never came.  After a moment, the silver-haired vampire rubbed desperately at her eyes, trying to restore sight to them as she listened to the ghoul growl in impotent rage.  When her vision finally cleared enough, she looked up to witness the ghoul straining to reach her, bound from head to feet with thick cords of darkness.  Beyond Tsukune she could see a person standing with head lowered, chanting an incantation that kept the ghoul constrained.  The dark-haired witch seemed barely able to keep the ghoul in check, but Ruby poured her energy into it, eyes tightly closed in concentration.  Beside her was a man all in white, face hidden underneath his cowl, whose hand was rising to the crucifix he wore at his throat.

     With a flash of light, a bubble of scintillating energy appeared around Tsukune, and he instantly froze in place.  Ruby slumped in exhaustion, her efforts to contain the ghoul’s power no longer necessary.  Moka watched as the man in white, the Headmaster of Yokai Academy, turned to speak to the witch. “We will deal with him in a more suitable location.  I will entrust you with the care of his friends.” His eyes darted to the side, seeing Moka rise to her feet with an indignant expression. “But first…”

     With a gesture from the Headmaster, the vampire’s rosario, removed and cast aside early in the battle, rose from the ground and flew towards her.  Moka barely had time to realize his intent before the cross-shaped pendant, the seal upon her vampiric powers, returned to its usual place at the base of her throat. As Moka returned to her accustomed form, the cloaked figure turned back to Ruby. “They are in your hands.  I will see what can be done for the boy.”  With a wave of his hand, an explosion of light erupted from the dome that surrounded Tsukune, dispelling the thick fog that had hung over the battlefield.  When the light faded, both the Headmaster and the ensnared ghoul had vanished.

     Ruby gave Moka a remorseful glance before running towards the still forms of Kurumu and Mizore, hoping that she was not too late to rescue them from their serious wounds.  The now-sealed vampire paid her no mind, however, instead staring at the bare earth where Tsukune had last stood. “Tsu… Tsukune?”  Tears rolled unnoticed down her face as she tried to will him back to her, to see his smiling face again, to hear his confident voice.  He would not appear, had been taken from her, and his last words echoed in her head as despair began to overtake her. “TSUKUNE!”

     Then silence reigned over the emptied battlefield, interrupted only by the occasional heart-wrenching sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Greetings, and welcome to my humble work. Pray excuse me, as I am a native of a different fanfiction site, and poorly-adapted to the ways of AO3, but I had hoped to share my works with new eyes and minds. To that end, this particular story is a completed work I will be posting over the next short while, with its similarly-finished sequel shortly to follow. These two stories are the beginning of a longer series I am still working on, but I hope you may enjoy what I have penned thus far. I feed on comments and critiques, and eagerly await whatever you would offer me.  
> This tale is, I should note, written with a philosophy in mind: Resolution requires Conflict. This first, admittedly-weakest, tale in the series focuses on that 'conflict,' specifically romantic conflict. My intended 'resolution' is a relationship upgrade for Tsukune and his three closest paramours: Moka, Kurumu, and Mizore. For the three girls and Tsukune to reach a point that they would agree to a shared relationship, while remaining in-character... well, takes putting them through an awful lot of hell, and this story is aimed at doing just that. Ruby and Yukari will not be included in the shipping, though they are present in the story; its more a matter of neither of them being developed enough for my tastes in shipping (and by developed, I mean something different for both of them). In any case, know that my goal is a happy ending, for Tsukune and the girls who love him in particular. While many people may have their favorite 'ship in this universe; I embrace the fate of a fleet. Call me Commodore.  
> Oh, and for the sake of not losing those who have not sought out all of the manga available, a note on the chronology: this story will take place shortly after Part 2, Ch. 22, and very soon will feature spoilers for chapters near that point (specifically the Orchid Dream, a very significant moment in Kurumu’s development and one I will be alluding to; The Snow Priestess arc is similarly crucial for Mizore). If you have not read this far, and hate spoilers, abandon all hope ye who enter here. I don’t hold back, starting with the very next section.  
> As for the warnings: my use of violence and noncon are related to their use in the manga; for this story, I am describing scenes mostly from the source material, but thought the warnings applicable considering their content.  
> Finally, all characters and settings contained within this story belong to Akihisa Ikeda and his publisher. Should my humble work offend those great beings, I offer only my apologies, as a quick glance at my bank account will reveal I am capable of surrendering little else. Imitation is praise, so let me offer that as my motive.  
> I will return soon with more, but now... I must sleep.  
> ~Wynn Pendragon


	2. Cold, Dark Dreams

**Chapter 1**

**_Cold, Dark Dreams_ **

 

     The man walked alone in a grey world.  All around him, darkness and light shifted and danced, swirling into almost recognizable forms before blurring into oblivion.  There was neither a recognizable ground below him nor sky above, but still he walked, dumbly trusting that each step he took would end on solid ground, or whatever passed for such in this drab world.  He had no goal, no intent, not even a sense of what had come before he found himself in this wasteland.  All that was, was grey and nothing more.

     And then he heard it.  A sound, from off to his left… a voice?   He turned his head towards the direction the sound had come from, and his path soon followed.  He could see, off in the distance if perspective could be trusted in this empty dimension, a faint white glow, untouched by the drab darkness surrounding him. 

     “…u…e…”

     Though he could not tell whether he was moving forward or merely walking in place, the white glow intensified in both size and intensity.  It, too, wavered and twisted, pulsating almost painfully.  He could hear other sounds from that direction, fractured sobs and mangled speech, but his pace neither increased nor slowed.  He would reach it when he did, and would welcome whatever he found there as respite from the eternal grey.

     “Ts…ku…”

     Now, the white blur grew at an almost alarming speed, as if it were coming to him instead of the opposite.  As it neared, he paused, staring into it as images began to form inside.  Absently, he noted that the previously neutral temperature of the wasteland had taken on a distinct chill.  Without a hint of recognition, he watched the blurry scenes within the haze before him, which was no longer drawing closer.  The distinct sound of a mournful wail produced the slightest hint of a reaction, the smallest of winces, and then the man stepped forward.

     As grey gave way to white, he heard a name being shouted, one that almost seemed that it should be familiar.

 

******

     “Tsukune!”

     Mizore Shirayuki thrashed against the weight that held her down, frantically turning her head from side to side as she fought to resist the seemingly-omnipresent hands and lips of the man above her.  Eyes tightly shut, the sensation of the freezing trails of her tears contrasted with the oppressive heat of the body that pressed her back against the bed, but her attention was focused on resisting the inexorable progress of the hand that was struggling to raise the edge of her kimono above her thighs.  Her flailing, her cries for help, earned her no compassion from the man who was forcing himself onto her, the man that had revealed himself to be her intended… Miyabi Fujusaki.

      “Somebody… Somebody, help me…”

     Even gripped by terror and feelings of powerlessness, part of Mizore’s mind stood detached from the events, watching almost impassively.  This had happened before, she knew.  This had happened when she and her friends had traveled to her homeland for ‘flower offering’ ceremony, and they had become embroiled in an attempt by the nefarious organization Fairy Tale to conquer her race.  Fujusaki had been Fairy Tale’s representative in those events, and had intended to claim her as a means of insuring the continued cooperation of her people.  It was only through the intervention of Tsukune and the rest of her friends that she had been spared such a fate, though she still bore the emotional scars of Fujusaki’s attempted rape.

     Her eyes shot open as the man’s hand raised to her waist, gripping the sash that held her kimono closed.  This had not happened back then; he had satisfied himself with groping her for a while before leaving her alone in the room to mourn her destiny.  There would be no such reprieve this time, it seemed, and she saw the gleam of conquest in his dark, dead eyes.

     “No!” she screamed, lashing out at him not only with her fist but also her powers as a monster, one of the rare yuki-onna who commanded the element of snow and ice.  Her hand took on the form of a monstrous claw of jagged ice, and her swing would have removed his head from his neck had he not thrown himself backward, off of her and the bed, towards the room’s back wall.  Seeing an opportunity for escape, Mizore lashed out again, forming a jagged wall of ice to keep Fujusaki away from her as she dashed for the room’s only door.  She reached it in an instant, but as she gripped the door handle she felt something thick wrap itself around her trailing arm, yanking her away from her desired refuge.  She was dragged back into the center of the room as another squid-like tentacle wrapped itself around her other arm, pulling strongly enough to turn her to face her assailant.  

     “It’s been a while, hunh, Shirayuki?” Mizore stared in horror at the angular face of Mr. Kotsubo, Yokai Academy’s former gym teacher and another man that had tried to force himself upon her.  She recoiled in disgust as the tip of another tentacle brushed against her cheek, and Kotsubo leered at her reaction. “Funny how we keep meeting this way.  Maybe its destiny.”

     The sound of shattering ice drew her attention, and she watched as Fujusaki walked through a gap in the wall she had formed, casually brushing melting shards from the lapel of his black suit.  He offered her a wan smile as he advanced, indifferent to her growing terror. “You really shouldn’t resist.  This is the best possible future for you.  I’ll take good care of you, and your homeland.  You can’t go back, not to the way you were.”  He reached out to her, and she winced as his hand came to rest on her shoulder. “But if you don’t trust me… why don’t you ask him?”

     Mizore glanced to her side, following Fujusaki’s gesture.  Her eyes widened as she saw Tsukune calmly standing there, watching her with an unusual expression.  Hope welled up inside her as she lunged towards him, Kotsubo’s tentacles pulling away from her without resistance.  She reached out to Tsukune, hoping for rescue, hoping for shelter, hoping for a way to forget.

     He slapped her hand away, eyes colder than a winter gale. “Don’t touch me.  Don’t get near me.” Mizore stared at him in utter shock, hearing tainted echoes in her own mind: “ _Dirtied_ … _unworthy_ … _violated_ …”  Behind him, she could see her other friends, each of them turning their faces away from her, disgust apparent in their expressions.

     “No… no…”

      “Don’t worry, Shirayuki,” snarled Kotsubo, and again she felt a thick tendril wrap itself around her arm. “We aren’t going to do anything to you.”  She heard him chuckle, but could not tear her eyes away from the cold scorn in Tsukune’s eyes. “You just ain’t worth it.”

     The tentacle jerked, and she was airborne, slamming into the room’s glass window and through it, down towards the jagged pillars of ice that formed the base of the Snow Priestess’ castle.  To her shock, she watched a winged form burst out of the window, diving after her, arms outstretched.  The feeling of déjà vu warred with her confusion as she felt Kurumu catch her, wings pumping as she fought to keep them both from slamming into the jagged icicles below. “Kurumu… thank-”

     Kurumu’s vicious smile froze her words, and Mizore could only see darkness and hatred in the eyes of the succubus as the pair flew upwards, to the window and past, above the highest tower of Mizore’s frozen homeland. “After what you tried to do to Tsukune… a fall like that just wasn’t far enough.”

     Her support vanished, and again Mizore plummeted towards the distant earth, back past the frozen spires of the Snow Priestess’ castle.  For an instant she thought she saw Tsukune, standing atop one of the towers and watching her fall with a vacant indifference, but then he was gone, and all that was left was the quickly advancing ground below.  In that final moment, despair conquered shock, and Mizore offered one final anguished scream.

     “Tsukune!!!”

 

******

 

     He watched the girl fall, only to vanish the second before she struck the frozen ground below.  Instantly a frozen wind began to blow, and flecks of white obscured his vision as the landscape itself seemed to dissolve.  There was a blinding flash of white, and suddenly he was back in the land of endless grey.  There was no sign of the frozen land or the white blur that had given birth to it; there was nothing, except for shifting shadows and light, as far as could be seen and beyond.   

      Without understanding why, or even caring, he began to walk once again.


	3. Dreams on Ice

**Chapter 2**

**_Dreams on Ice_ **

 

     Dawn had begun to seep across the landscape when Mizore Shirayuki reached her destination.  In a short while, even this distant setting would carry hints of the noise and bustle of students leaving their dorms and walking to class, but now, with night still cradling the land with all the tense reluctance of a lovers’ parting, all was silent and still.  As Mizore reached the shore of the lake, she scanned the surroundings as melancholy memories washed over her, relics from the last time she had felt so lonely, so abandoned.

     It had been here that she had brought Tsukune Aono not long after their first meeting.  Even before then, it had been one of her favorite spots to waste time, skipping rocks with the detached fervor of the chronically alone.  It had been her escape from a life she felt no connection to, a crowd in which she was inevitably shoved aside.  It was especially during her suspension, following her conflict with the rogue teacher Mr. Kotsubo, that she had frequently come here, often sitting at the shore and reading the school’s newspaper to pass the time.

     And then, there had been Tsukune.  She had become infatuated with him long before she had ever seen him, enraptured by his articles in the Yokai Times.  In his words she had sensed a kindred spirit, a soul terribly out of place and afraid.  She had come to eagerly anticipate the arrival of Ms. Nekonome, the kind teacher who had gone out of her way to visit her and give her copies of the school’s newspaper.  Mizore had even started to tease herself with each new issue, carefully reading each and every bit before allowing herself to indulge in Tsukune’s writings, which she would return to again and again.  She had preserved those treasured articles in a scrapbook, to which she had added her own notes and musings, even her fantasies about what could come from meeting Tsukune in person.

     A small smile tinged with sardonic bitterness crossed her lips.  A stalker, they had called her.  Fair enough.

     Resolutely, she stepped forward, out onto the water.  A latticework of ice immediately met her foot, supporting her weight as she stepped out onto it, and a wave of ice quickly spread across the lake’s surface, the temperature of the area dropping sharply in response.  The previously temperate setting was suddenly transformed into a scene from the heart of winter, and despite her bared shoulders and skirt Mizore instantly felt more at home.

     The lake had looked like this when she brought Tsukune here, once he had tried to leave.  She remembered with great remorse how she had reacted to his rejection, her desperate plan to freeze him into a permanent stature that she could dote upon, an unwilling and motionless remedy for her loneliness.  It was only through the intervention of Moka and Kurumu that he had been rescued, and Mizore had paid for her transgressions against them.  She remembered the raw grief she had felt then, and it had only been after Tsukune had rescued her from the renewed aggressions of Mr. Kostubo, and extended to her the hand of friendship, that she was able to begin healing that wound.  She could vaguely remember what it had been like then, the feelings she had carried for the image of Tsukune Aono that she had constructed, and how that image had been shattered by the presence of the real thing.

     The infatuation that she had born for her elaborate conception of the boy, the first that had ever come to accept her as a friend, was nothing, nothing at all, to the real love she now bore for Tsukune Aono.

     After Tsukune had rescued her from Mr. Kotsubo and from her self-imposed isolation, Mizore had come to join his circle of friends, and they had all come to accept her as well.  Now, she truly felt a part of them, and by joining the Newspaper Club she had finally gotten the chance to work alongside Tsukune and all of her friends.  For that reason, it had been some time since she had visited this lake, had craved the solitude and quiet that it offered over the chaotic activity that had come to characterize her life with her beloved friends.  She was truly having fun, and her life had begun to almost feel like a pleasant dream.

     And, for a long time now, she had dared to carry other dreams, grander ambitions.  With a soft smile and a fit of whimsy, she began to swing her arms, all but dancing upon the ice, which hastened to obey her commands.  Graceful spires and sloping mounds rose from the ice at the far end of the lake, an idealized concept of her homeland.  When that was finished, she tapped her chin a moment before exerting her powers again, focusing deeply as a pillar rose beside her and began to take form, details gradually emerging as she focused on getting the sculpture just right, down to the slightest line and curve.  Moments later, a statue of Tsukune stood beside her, broad smile upon his face and hand outstretched in invitation, the ghost of his warm laugh seeming to hang around the frozen form.

     This had been her dream, her goal.  Though she loved each of her friends dearly, it had been Tsukune who had come to embody her dreams for the future.  As one of the last of the yuki-onna, she knew that she was destined to return to her homeland to take a husband and focus her efforts on producing and raising the next generation of her race.  She had chosen Tsukune to be her mate, though she was forced to admit that she had not quite convinced him to completely accept that decision, but had resolved herself to win out over both Kurumu and Moka.  Even without the commandments of her people, she knew that she could have it no other way; imagining life without Tsukune was like imagining life without the hope of warmth, a return to the person she had been before, alone and afraid.

     But…

     “ _Shall we have some fun with him_ , _girls_?” _The monster held Tsukune aloft_ , _palm covering his eyes and fingers pressed tightly to each temple_.  _Tsukune twitched in his grasp_ , _feet swinging back in forth as he groaned weakly_. “ _Shall we see what he truly fears most_?”

     _Anger and fear etched on the features of all three girls_ , _Moka_ , _Mizore_ , _and Kurumu lunged at the monster_ , _desperate to free Tsukune from whatever torture the monster was inflicting upon him_.  _Before they could reach him_ , _the human’s body jerked sharply_ , _muscles straining as he convulsed_.

     “ _No_!  _No_!  _Moka_ , _no_!!!”

     “ _Do you hear that_?” _Mori Retsu stared directly at Mizore_ , _a hungry smile upon his face_. “ _It sounds like you’re not involved_.  _My condolences_.”

      A sharp crack brought Mizore out of her reverie.  With a jerk, she realized that she had momentarily lost her control over the frozen lake, and it had begun to thaw, weakening in the center, close to her.  She recoiled, stepping away from the sound, only to see motion from the corner of her eye.  The frozen statue of Tsukune had been standing in the middle of the lake, and the added weight made the ice surrounding it give way.  Horrified, Mizore watched as the sculpture, still bearing Tsukune’s kind smile, sank into the dark depths of the lake, quickly disappearing from sight.

     With a shudder, she regained control over her powers, ice quickly reforming to cover the open gash and strengthening the rest of the lake’s surface.  Once that was done, she turned a remorseful glance back to where the stature had stood.  How fitting that had been.  
     Over the past few days, tormented by her reoccurring nightmares and culminating in Mori Retsu’s acidic taunt during their fight, an overwhelming conclusion had been lurking at the edges of Mizore’s consciousness, and though she had struggled to ward off that devastating epiphany, now it pounced.  All of it… all of her dreams of life with Tsukune, the tantalizing thought of taking him home to live with her forever… all of it was destined to fade, unrealized.

     No matter what she desired, Tsukune Aono would never belong to her alone.

     Mizore fell to her knees on the ice as her breath caught in her lungs, her head spinning.  Moka… it had always been Moka.  The vampire had claimed Tsukune’s heart long before Mizore had even met him, and none of her efforts had managed to change that fact in the least.  Time and again he had proven the depths of his devotion to Moka, and Mizore knew the two of them shared a bond that could never be broken, certainly not while both lived.

     For a moment, she felt the old anger, the sharp-fanged pragmatism, rise up to offer her the obvious solution.  If Moka was removed from the picture, then perhaps… perhaps Tsukune could be hers.  She cared for Moka, loved her as a friend, but… compared to the notion of spending life alone, or with a man that she neither loved nor even truly knew… forever separated from Tsukune…

     No.  No, she could never do that.  She couldn’t live with herself if she chose to take the life of one of her friends in the name of her ambitions, no matter the gain.  Moka, Kurumu, all of them meant too much to her.  And then there was Tsukune’s feelings… he would be miserable, inconsolable, if something like that were to happen to Moka.  Claiming a hollowed Tsukune, eternally bereft of his confidence and optimism, would be a pyrrhic victory, if it could be called a victory at all.      

     Even as Mizore resisted that dark temptation, her conclusion only served to add to the weight of her anguish.  Yes, Tsukune would be devastated if something were to happen to Moka… but what if it were her?  Would he feel the same emptiness, the same horror at facing each new day without her?  She struggled to say yes, but something within her whispered the opposite.  He would be deeply wounded, but not ruined.  He would not feel as she would, were he to be taken from her.

     And now, she saw he already had been.

     Tears spattered the ice as she released her grief, sobbing raggedly.  Her slender frame shook as her unwanted epiphany continued to press upon her, stripping her of her will to move forward.  She tried to imagine another answer, another way that she could be with Tsukune without feeling each day the same open wounds and unresolved needs, but nothing appeared aside from her growing dark certainty.

     When Mizore stood up, her grief temporarily spent and her ability to face the day’s trials restored, it was almost time for class to begin.  She walked unsteadily to the edge of the lake and beyond, not looking back, her mind already returning to the pressing matters of Tsukune’s absence following the battle against Mori Retsu and the injuries her friends had incurred in that fight.  As she walked away, the ice covering the lake was already melting, succumbing to the day’s increasing temperature.

     She had barely entered the forest surrounding the lake when the remaining sculpture, the graceful spires of the land she had hoped to share with Tsukune, shattered and sank into the dark waters.


	4. The Three He Chose

**Chapter 3**

**_The Three He Chose_ **

     When Kurumu Kurono entered the Newspaper Club’s room after class, none of her friends bothered to greet her.  The blue-haired succubus glowered at the group, though none noticed; each of them were lost in their own worlds.  Along the far wall, Mizore Shirayuki sat at one of the desks and stared out the window, worrying the sucker she perpetually kept in her mouth as she sat with her chin propped on one fist.  Moka Akashiya sat in the middle of the room, hands clenched in her lap and her head hanging so low that her light hair had slid forward to frame and hide her face.  Even Yukari Sendo and the perpetually aggressive Kokoa Akashiya, Moka’s younger sister, were entirely subdued, both of the younger girls wearing expressions of guilt and regret.

     “Well?  Someone has to have heard something by now.  Come on, tell me!” Kurumu demanded, slamming her fists down on a desk.  At the sudden sound, every other girl in the room jumped, returning to themselves and turning to face the irate succubus.

     “Subtle as ever, bazooka girl,” Mizore quipped tensely.  Kurumu ignored the jab, eyes focused intently on Moka’s face.  Her expression fell when Moka offered only a slight shake of her head, confirming Kurumu’s worst fears.

     “Ruby said that the Headmaster was personally working to return to his human form, and was having some success…” Yukari offered, the young witch offering Kurumu a faltering smile, “But she also said that Tsukune lost consciousness the moment he was taken from the place where you all were fighting, and that he hasn’t woken since.”

      “Well, where is he?  I want to see him!”

     “He’s being kept in one of the Academy’s sub-basements, she said.  It’s for his protection… and everyone else’s.  Ruby said that the Headmaster won’t let us see him until he’s sure that whatever Mori Retsu did to him can be contained.”

     “What… What do you mean?”

     It was Moka who answered this time. “When I… when my inner self was fighting against Tsukune, he was different somehow.  When he wounded me, I couldn’t see for several moments, and even touching him made me feel…” Moka shivered, hugging herself as if for warmth, “So very afraid.  Unnaturally so.”

     “Well, then, why don’t we ask that creep Retsu what he did to Tsukune?  Where are they keeping him?  Where is he now?”

     Silence was the only response for several moments as her friends each worked up the courage to try to answer. “We don’t know,” Kokoa finally blurted, frowning fiercely. “Sis said she beat him, but by the time Ruby saw to your wounds, he had vanished.”

     Kurumu’s eyes widened with the weight of her dawning realization. “You mean… he got away?”  She could see frustration and guilt echoed upon the faces of all of her friends, and lowered her gaze to the desk before her.  For a long moment, no one bothered to speak.  When Kurumu did say something, her voice trembled with barely controlled anger. “I… I had the nightmares again.  It makes sense now.”

     She could hear muttered assent from all of the others, and in that moment accepted the reality of their situation.  She had hoped that her nightmare was simply a leftover from the past week of the same dream over and over, the same nightly torment.  Now she saw it for what it had truly been: a sign that they had not beaten their enemy, not at all.  Much the opposite… he had taken Tsukune from them, and had gone back into hiding.

     It had taken them several days after the nightmares began to realize that something unusual was occurring.  It was only after Tsukune, the only one of them that had not been afflicted with the dreams, had noticed their exhaustion and dark moods that he started asking questions, questions that led to the suspicion that their dreams were not normal.  When they had discussed the events that had taken place before the dreams had started, several of them realized that they had had unsettling encounters with a man they had never noticed before, who had introduced himself as Mori Retsu.  Yukari and Kokoa had not, but their dreams were not as pronounced as those of the other three girls.

     The reason for that quickly became apparent.  Ginei Morioka, the editor of the newspaper and occasional comrade to Tsukune and his friends, had come to them to request they research the rumors he had heard about a wave of nightmares spreading across campus.  A large number of the students had been affected, although none reported dreams that went beyond normal nightmares, and certainly none claimed to have felt the same emotional bombardment that Moka, Kurumu, and Mizore had experienced.  It was only after one student confessed to them that several nights before she had awoken to find herself outside the dorms, her pajamas covered in leaves and dirt, that they had begun to narrow in on the culprit.  The girl admitted to walking in her sleep, but she had never left the boundaries of her room, and the importance of that fact was emphasized when Ruby told them that an ancient artifact had been stolen from the school’s vaults the very night the sleepwalker had found herself wandering outside the dorms.

     It had been the very next day that Mori Retsu had appeared to Moka, Kurumu, and Mizore, and the following night that the wave of nightmares had started.

     Together, the Newspaper Club had tracked Mori Retsu down to his hiding place, a cave at the edge of the forest surrounding the school, where he had admitted his plans to manipulate the dreams of all the students of Yokai Academy, feeding off their pain and sadness.  He had overpowered Yukari and Kokoa immediately, catching them off-guard and leaving them unconscious.  He had gloated over the fact that he had chosen the three girls specifically, since their weakness was so blatantly obvious.  Kurumu had led the charge at that point, angered by his callous words and secretly afraid that he would reveal the contents of her reoccurring nightmare.

     And then… Tsukune…

     “So, where could he be hiding this time?  I’m sure he won’t go back to that cave in the forest, but has anyone been able to suggest another place he could be hiding?  Has anyone asked Gin, or some of the teachers?”

     “That’s the problem,” Yukari stated sadly. “No one has seen any sign of him, and Ruby said the Headmaster had a way of searching for his energy.  It didn’t work… he couldn’t find either Retsu or the artifact that he had been sealed in.”

     “Then… then…” Kurumu stared down at her clenched fists, tears welling at the corners of her eyes. “What can we do?  We have to do something!  Tsukune is…!”

     She felt a hand rest on her shoulder, and glanced up to see Moka looking at her with compassion and understanding. “We have to trust in Tsukune.  If he can break free of whatever hold Mori Retsu has over him, then maybe he can help us, maybe even give us a clue to where we could find Retsu’s lair and put an end to this whole thing.”

     Kurumu gave her friend a trembling smile, and nodded. “You’re right.  Until then, we just have to wait… and put up with these stupid dreams.  I’m sure Tsukune will be alright.  We just have to be patient…”

     After several minutes of forced levity and occasional lapses into silence, the group of friends decided to return to their respective rooms and find whatever rest they could, so that they would be prepared for the coming battle against Retsu.  Mizore was the last to leave, trailing unseen behind Kurumu with an intent look in her eyes.  When the succubus reached her room and entered, the other girl paused, debating with herself over her next course of action.  Hesitation finally won out, and the snow girl returned to her own room without speaking to the succubus, choosing to shoulder her own burdens without adding to Kurumu’s distress.

     As her door closed, the man that had followed her in turn smiled viciously, allowing his ebon wings to flex in triumph.  It had all begun to fall apart, with just the barest of effort on his behalf.  Now, the second phase began.  He chuckled darkly, and then vanished as a sand-ridden gust of wind swept over Yokai Academy.


	5. The Orchid Nightmare

**Chapter 4**

**_The Orchid Nightmare_ **

 

          The man walked alone in the endless grey.  It had been centuries, millennia ago that he had seen the vision of the pale girl’s fall from the heavens to the ice below, if it had ever been real at all.  Not that he had thought about those events, or about anything at all, instead watching as he put one foot in front of the other mechanically.  Nothing changed in this world, nor did anything stay the same: it was all grey and shifting shadows.

      When the faint scent of flowers reached his nose, he paused.  In this windless world, it was impossible to detect what direction it had come from, but he found himself drawn towards a patch of darkness to his right, a black that transcended the shadows that feverishly danced around him.  As he stepped towards it, unafraid, the pulsating darkness grew, and with each step it dominated the horizon more and more, until suddenly it seemed to be right in front of him.

     “I…”

     Had the man stopped to consider it, he would have realized that this darkness didn’t feel like the unsettling shadows behind him, but was instead quite comforting, like the black that is the last thing one sees before sleep comes to claim them, and the darkness that one clings to when desperately trying to avoid waking.  It was a warm darkness, shot though with shades of blue and the scent of flowers, or perfume.

     “I like…”

     As it had happened before, the darkness began to show shapes and color, and two human forms close together.  This time, however, the room that was revealed was far less austere, decorated with liberal amounts of stuffed animals and lace, and the black surrounding him was forced to give way to pink.  It was a girl’s bedroom, and the pair were sitting at the edge of her bed, the blue-haired girl watching the man intently, waiting with unbearable anticipation for his next words.  When the man spoke, it was in a robotic monotone, the syllables detached and reluctant.

     “I – li – ke – you.”

 

******

 

     Kurumu couldn’t resist the tears escaping her eyes, even though she sat inches away from Tsukune.  Had he been himself, had he not been under the effects of her power of Allure, she would have felt deep shame at him seeing her in such a state.  Now, however, knowing that he was not in control of his actions or even his own mind, she could let her emotions out, say what she could never tell him, let him know what truly lurked within her heart.

     “I want you to say it.  Not for everyone, just for me.  I want you to say it over and over…”

     Kurumu knew she was in a dream, or more precisely a nightmare.  It had been the same dream for over a week, returning each night to torment her.  She knew how it would progress, since she had felt much of it before, when it had happened in real life.  Still, that didn’t seem to lessen the tearing pain she felt at being reminded of this moment, when Tsukune, even under her hypnotic powers, could not bring himself to utter the words “I like you.”

     “I…”

      The now-familiar pause, the surge of poisoned anticipation that had flooded Kurumu each time this dream had returned, had not lost its effect.  Even as she braced herself for what always came next, the dream’s deviation from real events, she knew that she was defenseless against those words, coming from Tsukune’s voice.

     “I hate you.”

     Kurumu’s head jerked up, and with tears streaming down her face she stared into the emotionless eyes above her. “No… don’t say that…”  Her voice took on a manic edge as an out-of-control smile took to her lips.  “I like you!  I love you!  Like that, Tsukune!  Like that…” A sob choked her voice, but she didn’t turn her blurry eyes away from his face.

     “I… I love…”

     “Yes!  Like that!  Like-”

     “I love Moka.”

     Kurumu collapsed, the words taking away all power she had over her muscles.  She landed heavily, but felt as if she were still searching for the ground below, still falling.  She couldn’t speak, couldn’t think, but still she was not offered a reprieve.

     “I hate you… I love Moka… I hate you…”

     Kurumu’s horror distracted her from the feeling of hands grabbing her shoulders, dragging her from her bedroom and outside, all the way to the school’s athletic yard, the place that she had inadvertently used her powers on Tsukune while demonstrating them in response to Kokoa’s taunts.  By the time she realized where she was, what had happened, she was completely surrounded.

     “You heard him, didn’t you?”

     Kurumu raised her head, meeting the cold eyes of Moka Akashiya.  Though she was in her usual state, the rosario still sitting at the base of her throat, the vampire wore a haughty expression that would have felt more at home on the face of her unsealed self.  Moka slid her hand up the arm of the boy beside her, deliberately holding him close to her. “Tsukune loves me, Kurumu.  He can’t even bring himself to say that he likes you, let alone loves you.”

     Kurumu glanced at the boy beside Moka, and into the eyes of Tsukune Aono, no longer hazed by her power, but full of scorn and anger.  He sneered down at her, shaking his head. “What was it you said, Kurumu?  That you wanted to enslave all the boys of Yokai, and that surely one of them would be monster enough to be your ‘Mate of Fate?’  He shook his head, lip twisted in disgust. “Sorry, Kurumu.  I’m a human.  But maybe one of them would be willing to comply.”

     Kurumu twisted to see the multitudes of men walking towards her, each bearing the uniform of a student of the Yokai Academy.  It had to be all of them; they crowded the edges of the field, and she could see no end to the crowd.  They advanced slowly but inexorably, hands reaching out to grasp her, dumb lust in every eye she could see.  Frantically she looked from side to side, seeking a means of escape as she rose on her trembling legs.

     There, what was that?  Another Tsukune, standing alone, watching her calmly from the sidelines, not joining in the swell of students but instead standing as if rooted in place.  His expression was unreadable, neither disgust nor happiness nor fear, just an empty blankness.  That was different, that had never happened before in the nightmare-

     “Good luck finding the one, Kurumu.” The other Tsukune, the one with the face twisted by hatred, shot out a hand to shove her back towards the clutching crowd.  Momentarily freed from the chains of the nightmare, she reacted before he even moved, catching his wrist before he could reach her, jerking him towards her as her other hand shoved Moka away from him.  Desperately, she clutched to him, searching his face for a sign of mercy, a speck of hope.  Instinctively, she acted, grabbing his hair and tugging his face down to meet hers.  Their lips met, but immediately she knew it was wrong, his lips cold and lifeless.  Jerking away, she stared into his face.

     His eyes!  They were empty!  Not the mechanical lifelessness he had shown earlier, or the blank stare of the other one she had seen at the edge of her vision, but completely empty and lifeless.  They were like the eyes of a, of a… corpse.

     Tsukune slipped from her arms, falling limply onto the ground.  She dropped to her knees, shaking him roughly. “Tsukune!  Hey, Tsukune!  Wake up!  Tsukune!”  She could feel the hands of the other men now, grasping at her shoulder, tugging at her clothing, tangling in her hair, but they didn’t matter.  All that mattered was the lifeless form before her, his eyes staring without sight at the heavens above.

     “TSUKUNE!!!”

 

******

 

     As he watched, the crowd of men descended upon her, but as they fell upon her she vanished from sight.  Immediately specks of black began to spread across his vision, spreading like holes in a burning letter, and quickly the entire scene was consumed in darkness.  He saw a pulse of absolute black, and suddenly he was standing again in the realm of shifting shadows.

     The girl’s impassioned scream resounded in his ears, just as the final cry of the other girl had, but again it failed to reach him.  For just a moment, he tried to understand, tried to question, but it was quickly quelled.  Seemingly without his will, his feet began to move, propelling him forward towards nothing at all, nothing but grey and shadows, forever.


	6. The Fatal Truth

**Chapter 5**

**_The Fatal Truth_ **

 

     The warm water that had been raining upon Kurumu Kurono ceased with a loud squeak as she twisted the shower’s knob, hesitating as the steady flow was choked to a halting drizzle, and then died completely.  A hand resting on the tiled wall of the shower, Kurumu gradually shook free of the demoralizing thoughts that had been preying upon her enough to reach for the door leading back out into the steam-hazed bathroom, quickly drying herself and moving towards the bin where her clothes waited.  Neither the bathroom nor the halls she traveled on the way back to her room showed any other signs of life; night still reigned over Yokai Academy, and most of Kurumu’s classmates were still asleep, even though most of them now tossed and turned weakly, troubled by nightmares that were steadily growing worse.

     As she walked back to her room, Kurumu struggled to distract herself from her melancholy, since the shower had not cleared her mind as she had hoped.  Again, the nightmares; again, waking to realize that Tsukune was still hurt and being held somewhere where she couldn’t see him, couldn’t reach him.  Her mood darkened even further as she fought to restrain her anger at her situation.  She was Kurumu of Black Dreams!  As a succubus, she had latent power over dreams, her own and those of others, should she choose to exploit that power.  She had wondered, from her conversations with the others, if that was the reason that she had maintained a certain level of consciousness even within the dreams.  Neither Moka nor Mizore had mentioned such a thing, as for them every dream was the same, yet still the events of their dreams were fresh and new every time they relived them.  As Kurumu remembered the deviation in that night’s dream, the sight of Tsukune’s lifeless body sinking to the ground, she wondered if perhaps the other two girls didn’t have the better end of the situation.

      As Kurumu reached the door to her room, she felt a chill run up her back, but initially dismissed the feeling as paranoia stemming from her inadequate sleep.  She paused as she heard the footstep behind her, realizing that she had been right to feel on edge, and without turning around demanded, “What do you want, stalker girl?”

     “I… I want to talk.” Kurumu glanced behind her to see Mizore standing not far away, an expectant look on her face.  Though she wore her signature outfit, she seemed disheveled: her sweater sat unevenly on her shoulders, her trademark striped socks were rumpled and looked hastily pulled on, and even the belt she wore on her thigh sagged.  Kurumu fought to hide her shock as she noticed the redness around the snow girl’s eyes, and realized that Mizore, too, had just come out of a nightmare.

     “…come in.” Kurumu pushed the door open wide, kicking off her shoes and walking into the center of the room.  When she heard the door slide closed, she turned to face Mizore, fighting to quell her impatience. “Well?  What is it?”

     Mizore ignored her at first, glancing around the room, her gaze lingering on the various stuffed monsters and other decorations, stopping at the picture on Kurumu’s desk.  Stepping over to it, she picked it up from its resting place, examining the snapshot, which featured Kurumu clinging to Tsukune’s arm, both smiling at the camera.  She smiled slightly, which served only to put the succubus further on edge. “It’s about Tsukune.”

        “Yeah, I could guess that much.” Kurumu sat down on her bed, eyeing the other girl warily.  Something about Mizore’s manner made Kurumu feel awkwardly uncomfortable, and she hoped that whatever the snow girl had to speak about wouldn’t take long.  She preferred the oppression of her own thoughts to Mizore’s wounded hesitation.

     “I… I think we should give up.”

     “What!”  Kurumu bolted to her feet, facing the other girl intently. “What do you mean?  Just because he’s hurt, doesn’t mean we should lose hope!  Or…” Kurumu’s brow tensed as she considered the other meaning that Mizore’s words held. “Or do you mean…”

     “I think, when we do find Tsukune, that we should let him and Moka be together.” Mizore smiled pathetically at Kurumu, replacing the picture on the desk. “I think that he would be happier that way.”

     A long silence passed as Kurumu struggled to digest Mizore’s words.  Finally, the succubus could control herself no more, and her anger exploded. “Are you crazy?  No way!  Never!  I love Tsukune far too much to let that, that, that bloodsucker have him!  No, no matter what, I will win him.  If you want to give up on him,” Kurumu snapped, sitting back down and crossing her arms across her chest, “That will just mean less competition for me.”

     Finally the snow girl’s expression showed a little more fire. “Like he would choose you anyways!  If he hasn’t succumbed to those by now,” Mizore removed the lollipop from her mouth and pointed it at Kurumu’s obvious feminine features, much to the succubus’s outrage, “I doubt he will any time soon.  And, face it, those are the only trick you’ve got!”

     “Why… why you!” Kurumu shook with rage, raising her fist above her head. “I’ll have you know these are only one of the weapons in my arsenal of love.  I’ve just focused on them because they’re effective!”

     “Obviously.  That’s why you had to lie to your mother about him being your fiancé.” Mizore replaced the sucker in her mouth. “Those bazookas are the only weapons you have.”  
     “You lied to your mom, too!  I just did it better!” Kurumu sniffed dismissively. “Anyways, I have faith that he’ll come to recognize my superiority.  It’s just taking time.”

     Mizore paused for a long moment. “I said that too.  But we’re running out of time, Kurumu.  We only have one more year here at the academy, and after that we’ll both have to return to our homes, with or without Tsukune.”

     “A year!  Ha!  It won’t take anywhere as long as that!” Kurumu assured her.

     “Right, and that’s why you’ve been trying, unsuccessfully, for two years now.  The only time you’ve made any progress with him is when you’ve used your ‘Allure’ on him.”

     Kurumu didn’t respond for a long time, her head sinking low. “That’s low, Mizore.”

     Mizore nodded, her eyes softening in remorse. “I know.  And I can’t say anything.  I’ve done the same, when we returned to my homeland.” She smiled sadly, shrugging. “And even then he rejected me.”

     “So what’s your point?  Are you just willing to give up because Tsukune isn’t instantly falling for you?  Love takes work, and dedication, and perseverance!  You won’t get anywhere, just rolling over and accepting rejection!  I’ll never surrender like that!”

     “But do you think it can go on forever like this?  Kurumu, we’re hurting him!  You remember what happened when we fought Retsu, don’t you?”

     Kurumu’s eyes widened as she caught Mizore’s reference.  She couldn’t help but remember the moment perfectly, as it had tormented her ever since.  It had been at the heart of her own thoughts throughout the past days, even earlier as she showered.  Unbidden, the memory pushed itself to the front of her mind, the battle replaying for her once again.

     _Finally_ , _they had found the hiding place of Mori Retsu_.  _Yukari’s plan to hypnotize the sleepwalking girl and convince her to follow her path again back to his lair had worked perfectly_ , _and now the monster responsible for the nightmares that had swept across Yokai Academy stood before them_ , _seemingly unsurprised to see them_.

     “ _I had wondered how much longer it would take you to find me_.  _I was growing rather bored_ , _to be honest_ , _though I doubt that your efforts will prove much more entertaining_.” _He smiled at them wickedly_ , _turning to face them completely_. _On first glance_ , _he looked human_ , _a tall man perhaps a few years older than Tsukune and the others_ , _wearing an unadorned black suit_ , _with dark hair that hung just below his shoulders_.  _As he stepped forward_ , _out of the cave that he had taken as his home_ , _the most obvious difference became apparent_ : _his skin was a dusky grey_ , _and the color even stained the whites of his eyes_. “ _But_ , _we shall see_.  _Now_ …”

     _Beside them_ , _the hypnotized girl dropped to the ground like a marionette whose strings had been severed_ , _and Tsukune dropped to his knees to check on her_.  _The girl was still breathing_ , _slowly_ , _as if in a deep slumber_.  _Scowling fiercely_ , _Tsukune turned back towards the monster_ , _as did the others_ , _only to realize that he wasn’t there_.

      “ _You first_ ,” _came a growl from behind them_ , _and before the group could turn to face the threat Yukari moaned loudly_ , _her unfocused eyes closing as she slumped to the earth_.

     “ _Why_ , _you_ …!” _snarled Kokoa_ , _hand outstretched behind her as she used her magic to transform her bat familiar into a suitable weapon_. “ _I’ll make you pay for_ -”

     _Again_ , _the monster surprised the entire group with his speed_ , _pushing through the middle of them to reach Kokoa before she could react_.  _Palm thrusting out against the younger vampire’s forehead_ , _Mori Retsu shoved the girl away from the others_.  “ _You’re too noisy_.”  _As she fell back_ , _her eyes rolled back into her head_ , _already unconscious_.

      _Mizore was the first to react_ , _waving her hand and summoning spikes of ice aimed at the man’s back_.  _Before they could impale him_ , _however_ , _he was already gone_ , _and a chuckle drew the group’s attention back to where he had originally stood_. “ _I wonder if you’re getting the point_.  _Give up now and save us both the trouble_.  _Dying is just as easy as falling asleep_.”

     “ _Why are you doing this_?” _demanded Tsukune_. “ _Why are you tormenting everyone on campus_?  _Why have you targeted my friends_?”

     “ _Why_?”  _The monster smiled broadly_ , _shrugging as if the answer should be obvious_. “ _You need food to survive_.  _That girl_ ,” _pointing at Moka_ , “ _needs blood_.  _Me_ , _heh_ … _I feed off of suffering_.  _Off of pain_.  _Off of fear_.  _All the stuff of your nightmares is nothing but an appetizer for me_.  _As for why I targeted those three_ …” _Mori Retsu laughed loudly_ , _his leer showing all his teeth_ , _which were just as grey as the rest of him_. “ _You should know best of all_ , _Tsukune Aono_.  _Their weakness_ , _their flaws_ , _are painfully obvious_.  _I went after them because I knew just how to hurt them_!”

     _Tsukune jerked as if struck_ , _his shock quickly giving way to anger_.  _Before he could act_ , _however_ , _Kurumu lunged forward_ , _her fingernails extending into talons and her wings sprouting from her back_.  _Mizore followed closely behind_ , _her hands already forming into claws of ice_.

      _Mori Retsu offered them a smirk before he met their charge_.  _Moving so fast as to be a blur_ , _he dove at Kurumu_ , _his hand swinging out in a wide arc that caught her on the side of her face_ , _sending the succubus sprawling to the ground_.  _Spines of ice sprouted where he was standing_ , _a ring meant to entrap and impale him_ , _but he was already gone_ , _standing in front of Mizore_ , _his hand swinging back_ …

     “ _Don’t think about reaching for that rosario_ , _boy_.” _Moka and Tsukune froze as they heard the voice behind them a moment before Mizore landed on the earth_. “ _I know how that gimmick works_ , _and I’ll have none of that_.  _No_ , _you all need to give up quietly_ , _unless you want something horrible to happen_.” _He paused_ , _glancing first at Moka_ , _and then at the other two girls_ , _who were struggling to return to their feet_.  “ _It would be really unfortunate if I had to kill this boy first_ , _in front of all of you_.” 

     _Moka turned to Tsukune_ , _her eyes wide with fear_ , _only to see the dark figure standing behind him_.  _Realizing the danger_ , _Tsukune tried to turn to face the monster_ , _only for Mori Retsu to catch Tsukune’s face with his hand_ , _effortlessly lifting him into the air_.  _Tsukune cried out in pain_ , _and all three of the girls screamed out at once_ , _begging Mori Retsu to stop_.     

     “ _Shall we have some fun with him_ , _girls_?” _The monster held Tsukune aloft_ , _palm covering his eyes and fingers pressed tightly to each temple_.  _Tsukune twitched in his grasp_ , _feet swinging back in forth as he groaned weakly_. “ _Shall we see what he truly fears most_?”

     _Anger and fear etched on the features of all three girls_ , _Moka_ , _Mizore_ , _and Kurumu lunged at the monster_ , _desperate to free Tsukune from whatever torture the monster was inflicting upon him_.  _Before they could reach him_ , _the human’s body jerked sharply_ , _muscles straining as he convulsed_.

          “ _No_!  _No_!  _Moka_ , _no_!!!”

     “ _Do you hear that_?” _Mori Retsu stared directly at Kurumu_ , _a hungry smile upon his face_. “ _It doesn’t seem like you’re the one he’s concerned about_.  _So sorry_.”

     Kurumu shook her head violently, freeing herself from the memory that had plagued her ever since the battle at the cave. “Yeah, so, he screamed Moka’s name.  So what?  Big deal.”

     “You know it’s not that easy.” Mizore glanced away, deliberately refusing to meet Kurumu’s eyes. “We weren’t there, and she was.  You know that.”

     Kurumu scowled, but didn’t bother to deny the snow girl’s statement.  She had felt the same certainty every time she considered that event, though she couldn’t quite understand why.  For a moment she could understand why Mizore had come to her, knew that the snow girl had to be suffering the same insecurity and pain that she had endured since the first night after the battle.

     “Yes, but that doesn’t matter!  Tsukune has always looked out for Moka!  He has to, he’s the only one who can remove her rosario!  Just because he protects her doesn’t mean… doesn’t mean he’s chosen her…”

     Mizore watched her sympathetically as Kurumu rubbed at her eyes, choking back a sob. “You know it can’t go on forever.  Someday, he’ll have to choose, and this life that we’ve been living will end.  One of us will take him home, or none of us will, but in the end does it matter who wins?  In the end, we all lose something.” Mizore glanced away, her own eyes beginning to water. “If you won, I don’t know if… if I could ever forgive you.  I don’t know if I could still be…”

      “But what’s the alternative?  Do you really think that’s better?  Going home alone, watching Tsukune walk away from us forever?  No, no, no!  I love Tsukune too much to lose him like that!  I won’t give up my hope, no matter what happens, no matter how close he gets to Moka.  Because… that’s what he is for me, hope…”

     “I know.  It’s not any different for me.  But, I love Tsukune too.  And that’s why I’m saying this.” Mizore stared directly into Kurumu’s eyes, no longer trying to hide the tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. “Because I want him to be happy, no matter what.  And, I don’t know if… if I can give him that.  If anyone besides Moka can.”

     Kurumu fought the urge to scream, to clutch her stomach and run away, to lash out at Mizore for being so logical.  She wanted to pretend that she hadn’t had some of the thoughts that Mizore had just voiced, that she hadn’t possibly been on the road to the same conclusion.  Instead, she sat there and wept bitterly, paralyzed.

      Several minutes later, she spoke up, her voice cracking. “That doesn’t matter right now.  Nothing matters, except getting Tsukune back.  When he’s back to normal, back where he belongs… then we can think about this stuff.  Everything will be alright then.”

     Mizore didn’t respond, instead meeting Kurumu’s eyes for a moment before walking towards the door.  As she passed her friend, Mizore briefly laid a hand on her shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze, and then she was gone, stepping out of the room and closing the door behind her.  When Kurumu felt assured that she was far enough away, she fell back onto the bed, feebly trying to ward off the words that she already knew would haunt her for the rest of the day, if it would even end then.

     The walls and door to her room were almost thick enough to mute the sound of her crying, and the sound of the name she repeated over and over again.

 

******

 

     Outside, in the hall, the man dressed in black listened intently, smiling in satisfaction.  Everything was going according to plan, and it was almost time to put the final piece into action.  He had been right about those girls; it had all been too easy, and now it would be child’s play to manipulate them into taking the final step.  All that was left was making sure that the Key was complete, and his ambitions would be realized.

     His stomach rumbled as he belched quietly, and he rubbed his chest in surprise.  It was remarkable, really, how delicious their despair was.  But, he knew, this was only the appetizer.

     The main course waited.


	7. The Whispered Words of the Wolf

**Chapter 6**

**_The Whispered Words of the Wolf_ **

 

     That day, the second since the battle with Mori Retsu and the second without news of Tsukune’s recovery, passed with the same insufferable tedium for Moka and her friends.  After a half-hearted attempt to work on the next issue of the Yokai Times, they chose to yield to their exhaustion and return to their rooms, seeking rest and silence to again go over the thoughts that had tormented each of them since that ill-fated struggle.  It was obvious that the nightmares were taking their toll on each of them; all of the girls wore dark circles under their eyes and tended to lapse into absent-minded staring at inopportune moments.  Yukari and Kokoa had admitted that their dreams were getting worse, and murmurs around the campus suggested that was true for many of the students.  Even Ms. Nekonome had seemed dispirited, losing her place several times during her lessons.

     Moka Akashiya felt particularly weakened.  No only was she, like the others, feeling the full effects of sleep deprivation and constant worry over Tsukune’s well-being, but there was the unpleasant fact of her biological needs, needs that had gone unsated since she had last seen Tsukune.  Her thirst for his blood had only grown, becoming an incessant distraction and had no doubt played a role in her bouts of faintness.  She knew that soon she would have to resort to transfusion bags, her meal of choice before she had met Tsukune, but even such pragmatic concerns had failed to penetrate the fog of worry and helplessness that had surrounded her since he had been taken from her.

     “Hey.”  The calm greeting snapped Moka out of her reverie, and she turned to see Gin, her upperclassman and leader of the Newspaper Club, step around the corner of the dorms that she had been walking towards. “Want some company?” The handsome man flashed her a toothy smile, an expression that many girls would have found charming, assuming they didn’t know the truth of his character.

     “No thanks.”  Moka coldly turned her head and took another half-step before the obvious problem with the situation struck her. “H-Hey, these are the girls’ dorms!”

     “I know.”  Gin’s silky tone and indifferent shrug showed he didn’t intend to feign innocence. “But don’t worry, you’re the only one I came here for.”     

     Moka knew that she shouldn’t rise to his baiting, but her frayed nerves couldn’t handle his lack of morality. “How could you!  Tsukune’s injured, we’re in the middle of a crisis, and all you can think about is taking advantage of the situation.  This is low, even for you, Gin.”

     When Moka advanced toward him angrily, Gin backed away a step, hands raised in nervous defense, his smile strained. “No, you’ve got me all wrong!  I’m here for another reason, trust me.”  He stopped, all mirth sliding from his face.  “I’ve been doing some research, y’see… It’s about that Retsu guy.”

     “Mori Retsu?  Please, tell me!” Moka implored him, eyes widening in hope.

     “Listen, it’s not that much, and it’s all second-hand, but I trust my sources.” Gin smiled in consolation, smoothing his dark hair back from his trademark headband. “I don’t know if it will be any help, but…”

     “Please, anything will be a relief at this point!”

     Nodding, Gin placed his hand on the dorm’s wall and leaned on it. “She – my source – said that Mori Retsu is something of a celebrity… he’s mentioned in old stories, all the way back to the times of ancient Greece.  He preyed upon the nightmares of humans back then, only to disappear and reappear centuries later, again and again.  He had last been seen in the American West nearly a hundred years ago, but no one had heard anything of him since then.”

     “But… why would he come here, especially since he targets humans?  And could it really be the same person, after all that time?”

     Gin nodded reluctantly. “I had trouble believing it myself, until she told me that the story is that his soul is bound to an object, called a phylactery.” Gin pronounced the word carefully, uncomfortable with the notion. “It seems that was what turned up here in Japan.  Somehow the Headmaster ended up with it, and he decided to keep it in the vaults here at the Academy, under lock and key.  He seemed to think it would be safer that way.” Gin gave Moka a wry smile. “Guess not.”

     Moka’s shudder had nothing to do with the chill wind that swept over the Academy. “He used his control over dreams to trick that girl into freeing him... but how did she make it into the sealed vaults, even under his control?”

     “No one knows.  I’m afraid he may have had outside help… it all seems a little too convenient, if y’know what I mean, especially considering the fact that he immediately went after you and the others.  But, beyond that, I wasn’t able to find out much else, not even what this ‘phylactery’ is supposed to look like.” Gin shrugged, pushing away from the wall. “Oh.  She told me his original name… if I can remember it.”

     “Oh, yeah, that’s it.  She said he was called Morpheus.”

     Moka nodded gravely, offering Gin a gentle smile of gratitude. “Thanks, Gin.  I’m sure all of this will be a big help.”

     “Don’t worry ‘bout it.” Gin turned to leave, waving casually over his shoulder.  Before he took the first step, however, he hesitated, finally turning back to face her.  Moka’s eyes widened as she saw how uncharacteristically serious his expression was. “Hey…”

     “Y-Yes?”

     “I just wanted to say… I mean, I know I have an image to uphold and everything, but I wanted you to know that you girls aren’t the only ones worried about Tsukune.  Seems like everyone that knows him is.  I didn’t want to give you the wrong idea earlier.” Gin scratched the back of his head, embarrassed, as he forced out his unexpected confession. “No offense, but I’ve given up on ya.  You and Tsukune, I wish you only the best.”

     Blushing fiercely, Moka saved her hands in front of her. “No, we aren’t… we haven’t…” Gin’s laughter only making her discomfort worse, she desperately tried to think of a way to change the topic.  Suddenly, an ice-cold realization loomed in front of her. “Wait a second!” She stabbed an accusatory finger in his direction. “I see what you’re up to!  You’re hoping that me and Tsukune will, will get together, and leave Kurumu and Mizore for you!”

     Gin slumped, his hanging head hiding his shame. “Aw, geez.  You gotta think that I’m the scum of the earth to think something like that.” He deliberately ignored Moka’s enthusiastic nodding, mulling over his next words. “You’ve got me all wrong.  Those two… there’s no way I’d go after them.”                

     “What?  But they’ve talked about how you trained them during the summer, and how you kept groping them and-”

     “Well, yeah, of course.” Gin shrugged indifferently. “I considered that a fair price to pay, all considered, and didn’t it make them faster and better at dodging incoming attacks?  But there’s a line between a little appreciative contact and dating someone.”

     “Only you think that, Gin.”

     Gin smirked at her, but there was something cold in his eyes. “Sure, it will take some effort and time, but I’m sure my heart will be able to move on after you.  Those two… I’m not going to spend the rest of my life being compared to Tsukune Aono.  Come on, I’m not a second-place prize!” He saw the blossoming pain in her expression as she considered what he was implying, and pressed on. “When you get together with Tsukune, those two are your burden, not mine.  There’s plenty enough girls out there for me without going after someone that will never be happy enough with me.”

     When Moka didn’t respond, he turned again to leave. “Anyways, I’m sure you’ve got plenty of time to worry about that.  Worry about finding Mori Retsu, and then we can put this whole mess behind us for the time being.  I’ll keep in touch, and let you know if I find anything.  Later!”

     For a long time after Gin had left, Moka stood there, pondering her upperclassman’s words.  When she was with Tsukune, it was all too easy to focus upon him, to dream about what it would be like if they could become even closer, and occasionally she had even viewed her friends merely as rivals towards that end.  When she thought about the price of winning, however, she couldn’t help but regret what might happen.  After all, she could barely imagine what it would feel like if Tsukune chose Kurumu or Mizore over her, and she knew that they undoubtedly felt the same way.  She knew that if it were her, she would hate the other girl, even though she would try to be happy for their sake.

     Shaking her head to clear those clinging worries, she turned to make her way to their dorms, starting with Mizore on the first floor.  Like Gin had said, those things could wait, would have to wait.  Defeating Mori Retsu and helping Tsukune recover were the only things that mattered now, and hopefully by sharing Gin’s news with the other girls she could find a way to speed up their searching.

     She needed Tsukune back.  They all did.      


	8. A Bloody Nightmare

**Chapter 7**

**_A Bloody Nightmare_ **

 

     Nothing had changed in the grey world, nothing ever did, and the man walked on through the shifting shadows and light.  Time meant nothing there, but surely it had been ages since he had witnessed the buxom girl swarmed by her zombie-like paramours, and eons since he had seen the land of ice and snow.  Still, since nothing else had happened beyond one step forward after another, those memories circled around him, as if seeking a way in.  He could feel their ghosts hanging off of him, but it didn’t slow his progress, ever onward for no reason at all.

     This time, it was the faint metallic tang in the air that made him pause.  Directly in front of him, off in the distance or perhaps not all that far away, was a crimson glow, shot through with streaks of silver.  It, too, wildly pulsed as if alive, and so enraptured him that he almost felt compelled to walk faster.  As it drew nearer, he could again hear voices, but this time there were two of them, one full of grief and the other calm and cool, all but layered atop one another.

     “Tsuku…”

     “ _That’s not how_ …”

     The scarlet glow intensified, ready to encompass him, and now he knew that scent was that of blood, copious amounts of blood.  He could see faint images ahead of him, a pitched battle and another figure standing off to the side, watching it all happen.

     “No… Tsukune…

     “ _It didn’t happen like_ …”

     He stepped forward one last time, and the world of grey faded behind him, giving way to another world entirely.

 

******

 

           Blood was everywhere.  Tsukune Aono stood alone in the middle of a ring of bodies, blood dripping from his fists, coating his chest and face.  His former opponents showed no sign of recovery, as even those who weren’t beaten beyond recognition were no doubt in serious condition.  Tsukune, however, showed no sign of injury, other than the two holes in the side of his neck and the livid red lines that spread outward from them, up his face towards eyes that were themselves crimson.

     One of the Mido’s band of monstrels, the unfortunates who had brought this apocalypse onto themselves, groaned in pain, curling around a broken arm.  Through the swelling around his eye, he could see Aono turn towards him, slowly extending a foot to roll the monstrel onto his back. “What…”

     With a cruel leer, Tsukune Aono placed his foot on the center of the monstrel’s chest and began to lean upon it, pushing down with all his force.

     “Tsukune, no!” Moka Akashiya screamed, her voice failing to drown out the sound of ribs yielding to the pressure.  She hugged herself tightly, looking away from the carnage.  It was all her fault.

     The other Moka stepped forward, towards Tsukune.  Glancing back at the other girls behind her, she explained what was happening to the boy they all cared for, the changes that were rampaging through his system. “Tsukune has turned into a ghoul… a killing machine doomed to wander the world in search of human flesh!”  None of them paid any mind to the all but transparent chain that hung from the silver-haired vampire’s choker, trailing down to the earth and wandering several paces away, where it was wrapped around the arms of another Moka Akashiya, this one just as ghostly as the chain that bound her.  That Moka, her hair the light reddish-brown of her usual self, lowered her head as her tears dropped to the ground, wincing at every word.

     “Oh, why didn’t you listen to me, Tsukune?  Why didn’t you go back to your own world?”  The silver-tressed vampire walked forward, eyes firmly set upon Tsukune, who was too busy finishing the last of the surviving monstrels to acknowledge her presence.  Despite the shouted pleas of the other girls, she advanced, unyielding resignation in her eyes.

     “ _I had no choice_ , _you know_.  _I think you accepted that_.  _She never did_.”

     A third Moka, similarly silver-haired, stood apart from the scene, watching it all with an irritated expression.  She glanced to her side at the watcher from the world of grey.  Growing angrier with his vacant expression, she returned her gaze back to the action. “ _I expect you understand what its like_.  _To know that one of your greatest fears_ … _is your own power_.”

     He didn’t respond, blankly watching the ghoul and the vampire in front of him, watching them begin to fight, then break apart as the ghoul struggled to maintain his footing.

     “The truth is… he’s already dead.  I’m only sorry that he wasn’t blessed with a better fate – true death.  Instead of the undead life of a ghoul.  He has nothing like a life now.  No soul.  No will.  He lives only to serve his instinctive lust for blood and flesh.  If we leave him be, he’ll be killing humans soon.”  The Moka participating in the fight glanced back at her friends, grave regret in her eyes. “You know that Tsukune never would have wanted that.  And the one to blame for making him into this… is me.”

     “ _I was ready to kill you_ , _you know_.  _I never_ , _ever wanted to_.  _But I was going to_.”

     “No!” Kurumu threw herself between the vampire and Tsukune, and Yukari and Mizore quickly joined her. “I can’t let you do this, Moka.  You can’t hurt him… without going through us!”

     The Moka standing beside the watcher looked away, conscious of what would come next. “ _It didn’t happen like this_ , _but it could have_.”

     With their back to the ghoul, the three girls stood no chance.  Kurumu was the first to fall, her blood fountaining into the air as she stared straight ahead, her final expression one of shock and betrayal.  Neither the young witch nor the snow girl tried to defend themselves, only to try to reason with the rampaging ghoul.  The silver-haired vampire moved to intervene, but the chain bound to her choker pulled tight as the ghostly Moka yanked on it, desperate to save Tsukune from herself.  Stopped before she could take a step, the vampire could only watch as her friends died.

     The watcher from the world of shifting shadows saw them fall to the ground, and again the persistent whispers tried to tell him that it mattered to him, that he should be feeling something.

     The silver-haired vampire’s eyes widened as she growled, trembling in rage. “TSUKUNE!” she roared, lunging at him, dragging the ghostly Moka behind her as she closed with the ghoul with killing intent.  Their fight was inhumanly fast and brutal, neither side holding back for any reason.

     “ _If we hadn’t been lucky_ , _if it hadn’t been for so many things_ , _it may have ended there_ , _in that warehouse_.  _Don’t you remember_ … _Tsukune_?”

      “Why…?” The ghoul lay on the ground, blood oozing from several wounds, one arm twisted at an unnatural angle.  It forced itself to climb to its unsteady feet, staring at the panting vampire a few feet away. “Why… Moka…?” The voice was a croak, as if the throat it came from was worn raw.

     As one, all three Mokas faced him, anguish and misery in their eyes.  

     “Why did you do it to me…?  Why did you turn me into this… thing?  Why didn’t you let me live the life I wanted…?” The ghoul’s eyes, still crimson, were edged with tears. “Why…?”

     The three versions of Moka Akashiya all reacted in very different ways.  The one closest to the watcher turned away with a loud “Tch!”, not willing to watch the scene before her nor face the man beside her.  The ghostly Moka, bound by her chains, struggled to climb to her feet, to lunge between the vampire she was connected to and the man she loved, just as her fallen friends had done.  The last Moka, however…

     Hand stiffening into a flat surface, she drew back for the killing blow.  Crimson eyes gleaming, pure white fangs shining in the dim light, she smiled as she lunged at Tsukune Aono, plunging her hand into his heart.  The ghoul’s eyes widened as his head snapped back from the force of the blow, and then he slid to the ground, motionless except for the blood trickling from his fatal wound.

     “ _It hurts_ , _to think that she sees me that way_.  _To be feared by my own other self_.”

     The scene before them began to dissolve, only to reform into something else, a long hallway.  Again, Moka stood before Tsukune, and a chain trailed from her choker back to the ghostly Moka kneeling a short distance away, who was shaking as she sobbed.  This time, however, the Moka standing nearest to Tsukune was in her usual form, though her eyes seemed blank, and she held a scalpel in her right hand.

     “ _I can’t put up with this much longer_.  _It couldn’t be much better for you_ , _Tsukune_ , _reliving all the times I’ve nearly killed you_.” The Moka standing nearest the watcher looked at him, brow tensed with confusion. “ _Hey_ , _are you listening to me_?”

     The watcher from the world of the endless grey stared at the conflict in front of him, watching as the dull-eyed Moka slashed at Tsukune with the scalpel.  So focused was he, he didn’t notice the Moka standing nearest to him walk in his direction, arms crossed.  He only blinked when she circled around him, coming to a stop directly behind him.  He did, however, take a step forward as she slapped the back of his head.

     “ _I said_ , _are you listening to me_?” The vampire glared at him as he gazed at her with dumb incomprehension. “ _I know you’re not just part of the dream_.  _I’ve seen it too many times_ , _and you’ve never been here before_.  _You’re really Tsukune_ , _aren’t you_?”      

     The watcher couldn’t respond, couldn’t understand what she meant.  The other girls, the snow maiden and the girl who loved stuffed animals, they had noticed him, but hadn’t spoken to him.  Neither of the Mokas taking an active role in the scene before them had paid him any mind, either.  Then why was this girl speaking to him?

     “ _You don’t remember_ , _do you_?  _Whatever Mori Retsu did to you_ , _it’s taken your memories_.  _That’s why you haven’t woken up_.”  When he didn’t respond, she shook her head. “ _Maybe what comes next will jog your memory_.  _It’s what led up to this whole mess_.”

  His gaze followed her gesture back to the scene taking place not far away, where the blank-eyed Moka was standing up from the body of Tsukune Aono, the scalpel jutting from his chest.  Once again, the dream blurred and then reformed, and now the setting was a cave, at the edge of a forest.  Again, it featured the boy and the two Mokas chained to one another.  However, this time, there were several other girls, three of which lay motionless on the ground.  The other two, the purple-haired snow maiden and the blue-tressed, buxom girl, looked to be ready for battle.  Tsukune, however, seemed to already have been defeated, his body dangling from the hand of another man-

     Morpheus, Lord of Dreams, Master of the River Lethe.  Mori Retsu, he who would be the Hell-Kings’ Bane.

     The watcher shook his head weakly, unable to understand where that information had come from, what voice had whispered in his ear that the girl beside him had not seemed to hear.  Trying to clear his vision, which seemed to have momentarily lost all color, he focused on what was happening in front of him

     “Shall we have some fun with him, girls?” The monster held Tsukune aloft, palm covering his eyes and fingers pressed tightly to each temple.  Tsukune twitched in his grasp, feet swinging back in forth as he groaned weakly. “Shall we see what he truly fears most?”

     Anger and fear etched on the features of all three girls, they lunged at the monster, desperate to free Tsukune from whatever torture the monster was inflicting upon him.  Before they could reach him, the human’s body jerked sharply, muscles straining as he convulsed.

    “No!  No!  Moka, no!  …DON’T KILL ME!”

     “Do you hear that?” Mori Retsu stared directly at Moka, a triumphant grin upon his face. “It seems what he truly fears most… _is you_!”

     “ _I_ …” The watcher glanced beside him, and saw that the Moka beside him had turned her crimson eyes to the ground, her brows furrowed as if she were in great pain. “ _I didn’t think_ … _it happened like_ …”

     The blue-haired girl, Kurumu, leapt at Mori Retsu, but he responded by swinging Tsukune’s body between them, drawing the succubus up short. “Not so hasty.  Wait and see,” he cajoled the girls. “Don’t you want to make sure your friend is okay?”

     He lowered Tsukune to the ground, letting the silent boy stand on his own power, before stepping away.  For a moment, no one moved, watching Tsukune intently as he twitched and jerked where he stood.  It was Moka who mustered the bravery to quietly call his name.

     In response, Tsukune slowly pivoted around to face them.  As he turned, they could see the emptiness in his eyes, the vacant stare.  He slowly raised his right hand, staring at his palm as if it were something he had never seen before.  Following his gaze, the girls couldn’t see what was causing him to act in such a way, couldn’t see anything different about his hand.

     That was when the black sand started to appear in the center of his palm.  Slowly it drifted downward, sliding down his hand and following the line of his wrist, only to stop and cling to the metal of the Holy Lock he wore there.  It came faster, pouring out and down onto the chain, until all of the metal was completely covered.  When the last grain of sand had fallen into place, Tsukune turned to face the girls.

     His eyes were a crimson shade, and full of the mindless hunger of the ghoul.

     Their shock kept the girls from reacting in time as Tsukune dashed at them, hand clawed and held above his head.  He dove into their center, his downward slash targeted at Moka, who had no chance to move.  His view obscured by Mizore, the viewer could not see what happened, could only hear the sound of tearing cloth and Moka’s cry of pain.

     The first thing to fall upon the ground was the drop of Moka’s blood from Tsukune’s fingertip.  The second thing to fall was her rosario, which landed upon the ground with a metallic clink.

     “What… what have you done, you fool?” Mori Retsu screamed at Tsukune, unable to believe how his fortunes had changed. “You’ve released-” The monster staggered back as he felt the power unleashed by Moka’s transformation.  Horror in his eyes, he stared upon the girl’s true form, the deadly beauty of a vampire.

     “He released your doom, fool.  Learn to do it yourself, next time.” The vampire smiled at Mori Retsu, baring her fangs. “Though I don’t intend to give you a second chance.”

     Before the ghoul had the chance for a second attack, Moka lashed out, her foot sending Tsukune’s body a good distance away from both the girls and their opponent.  Sparing a quick glance back at Mizore and Kurumu, she pointed at the ghoul. “Keep him tied up as long as you can.  I’ll take care of our friend there, and then Tsukune should return to normal.”

     As the two nodded and moved to intercept the ghoul, Mori Retsu began to laugh. “You think it will be that easy?  You think that I’m a pushover?” He waved the vampire on, grinning madly.  “Allow me to show you a true nightmare.”

     “ _It was over so quickly_.  _But I was wrong_ , _you didn’t get better after I defeated Retsu_.  _Why?  What happened to you_ , _Tsukune_?”

     The watcher didn’t respond, didn’t know how to.  Was he… Tsukune?  Had that all happened to him?  The other girls, they had called out that name, and it had been the pain in their voices that he had been unable to forget.  Was he really responsible for-

     “ _What’s that_?” The vampire beside him pointed at his chest. “ _What are those lights_?”

     The watcher glanced down, confused.  She was right; directly in front of him, hovering in front of his chest, were two small glowing orbs: one pure white, the other a silky black.  He stared at them, confused, as she reached out towards him, moving to touch them.

 _-After what you tried to do to Tsukune_ … _a fall like that just wasn’t far enough._

     - _Tsukune loves me_ , _Kurumu_.  _He can’t even bring himself to say that he likes you_ , _let alone loves you_.

     The vampire jerked her hand back, her crimson eyes wide. “ _Mizore_ … _Kurumu_ … _so much pain_!  _Tsukune_ , _what are those_?  _Why do you have_ -”

      “Tsukune, no!”  Both of them turned at the cry from the chained Moka, their attention brought back to the battle that had been taking place.  The bodies of Kurumu and Mizore, along with that of Mori Retsu, lay upon the ground.  Now the fight was between the ghoul and the vampire, neither of whom were pulling their punches.  Moka’s eyes seemed clouded, and she frantically rubbed at them as if trying to regain her vision.  Even unable to see, she still managed to avoid all of the ghoul’s attacks, until her heel caught on a protruding root, staggering her.

     She did not fall, however.  As the ghoul pulled back for the final strike, she regained her footing, and struck out blindly.  The chained Moka screamed at the sound of bones crunching and giving way, and even the silver-haired vampire beside the watcher moaned in pain.

     As the Moka that had battled the ghoul blinked, her vision finally returning, the first thing she saw was the human eyes of Tsukune Aono, clouded by pain and confusion. “Why, Moka?” he gasped, coughing blood.  “Why…?”

     “Tsukune!!!” All three Mokas screamed as one as the body fell to the cold earth.  The watcher stared, confused, feeling almost as if he understood.  That was him, or it could have been, had it not been for-

     The Moka that had been wrapped in chains disappeared, and suddenly the landscape showed blotches of crimson everywhere.  The dream was decaying, just like the others had.  The vampire that had fought the ghoul was frozen in place, already beginning to turn red as if stained by the glow of the fading realm.

     “ _No_ , _not yet_!” Streaks of silver shot through the world, as if to hold it together. “ _Tsukune_ , _wherever you are_ , _you have to come back to us_!  _Mori Retsu wasn’t defeated here_ , _and we think that_ -”

     “What a nuisance.”

     The vampire turned at the sound of the cold voice, unable to believe what she was seeing. “ _You_!  _How_ -”

     The man with grey skin and black wings snapped his fingers, and suddenly the vampire was gone, as if she had never been there at all.  The watcher, who had just begun to think of himself as Tsukune, stared at the emptiness where she had been, trying to understand what had happened.  All around him, the dream faded into crimson, and with a final flash he was back in the world of the shifting shadows.

     “That’s it, the final link that I needed to complete you.” The other man’s wings flexed as he stepped towards Tsukune, smiling at him hungrily. “Go on, take it.”

     As Tsukune watched, a small orb, this one red with hints of silver, appeared in front of him.  It floated towards him, slowly coming to his chest, just over his heart, as the other two materialized and joined it.  They came together just as they all touched him, and the pain of their touch made him scream in uncontrollable agony.

     “That’s it.  Do you remember it now?  This is your nightmare, Tsukune Aono.”

     _His eyes opened_ , _and he didn’t know where he was_.  _His hands felt wet_ , _and he raised them_ , _eyes widening as he saw the blood dripping from them_.  _As he watched_ , _the blood trailed down his right wrist_ , _where the Holy Lock was supposed to be_.  _Did that mean that he had been a ghoul_?  _Why_ …

     _He glanced down_ , _and noticed the dozens of still forms surrounding him_.  _His heart stopped as he saw the body laying closest to him_.  _Kurumu’s sightless eyes stared at him in accusation_ , _and no matter how long he stared she didn’t seem to move_ , _to breathe_.

     “ _No_!”

     _There_ , _beside her_.  _That violet hair_ , _those icy blue eyes_ … _that lollipop_ , _fallen from its usual place and sitting in an expanding pool of blood_ …

     “ _No_!”          

     _And there_ … _He wanted to stop_ , _he didn’t want to see any more_ , _but he couldn’t help but lower his bloodstained hand to touch her cheek_ , _search her eyes for any sign of life_ , _any sign of hope_ …  _His head fell back_ , _and he screamed_.

     “ _Moka_ , _no_!!!”

     “ _This is your worst fear_ , _Tsukune Aono_.  _And I will see to it that it comes true_.”     

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I applaud you, dear reader, for making it halfway through this story. I hope you have enjoyed it thus far, and I will be back soon with the remainder for your perusal, and, I hope, your commentary.   
>  I will make a certain self-critique here, a bit of self-examination in regards to this tale's mechanics. This story, began in 2009 and completed in a few scant days, has its distinct flaws. My decision to begin in media res was, in retrospect, not great; a bit of background fun and chaos before the angst would have helped the story's flow. It also would have kept the first half from being as depressing as it is, but, as you have made it thus far, I should note that things will change soon indeed. I comment on these blemishes to note that I intend, after I finish the other works in the series, to come back and revisit this work. At that time, I hope to address these problems, and any advice you may give to that end would be appreciated. Any words at all, actually...  
>  In the name of brevity, which for me is typically a profane word, I will end my blathering here, but I shall be back soon with more. Till then, I sleep...  
>  ~Wynn Pendragon


	9. The Key

**Chapter 8**

**_The Key_ **

 

     When Tsukune regained his senses, he was again in the land of the endless grey.  This time, however, something was different.  Though the shadows and light still danced and writhed, it all seemed to be drawn in a center direction, like water flowing down a drain.  He turned to glance behind him, and froze at the horror of what he saw there.

     It was like a whirlpool, but made of darkness.  All of the shadows were being pulled into it, while the light that was mixed in seemed to fade away.  It was impossibly huge, almost like a galaxy of nothingness, and it drew him towards it, subtly but undeniably.

     “Welcome to the end of the River Lethe.  This is where it all ends, the slumber that you cannot be woken from.” Mori Retsu stepped toward Tsukune, hand held out. “Welcome to your new home.”

     “What… What have you done to me?  To my friends?  Why did you show me all those horrible things?”

     Mori Retsu grinned hungrily. “Those ‘horrible things’ are more your doing than mine, Tsukune Aono.  Those are nightmares, the dreams that your friends have of you.  Didn’t you enjoy their pain, their fear, their anguish?” 

     “No!  Why are you hurting them?” Tsukune took a threatening step forward, heedless of the fact that it brought him closer to the horror behind Retsu.  Before his foot touched the ground, however, the monster was gone.

     “Ha, that’s a good one.  Why am _I_ hurting them?  Weren’t you paying attention to what was happening in those dreams?” Tsukune froze as he heard Retsu’s voice from directly behind him. “I’m not the one that has hurt your friends.  You are.”

     Tsukune whirled, fists clenched, but Retsu was gone once again. “Do you know what the greatest fertilizer for pain is, Tsukune Aono?” This time, the voice was almost directly in his ear.

     “Love.”

     Restraining the urge to swing wildly in the hopes of dealing Retsu a glancing blow, Tsukune forced himself to stand still. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

     “Oh, come on!  Do you remember why I said that I picked your friends?  Why they, out of all of your classmates, were the easiest targets?” Restu laughed loudly, and Tsukune lunged in his direction only to find empty air. “I went after them because I knew just how to hurt them! I knew their weakness… was you!”

     Frustration and guilt fought each other for dominance inside of Tsukune. “So you targeted us because we care about each other.  I get it.”

     “’Care?’  Bah, if that was it, then it wouldn’t have mattered which of you I had chosen to be the Key.  No, it had to be you, and it had to be those three, specifically.”  Mori Retsu appeared again in front of Tsukune, pointing his finger at him. “It’s because they’re in love with you, all three.  Unrequited love, love doomed to tragedy, even love that would create more sadness than happiness if it was realized.  You’re the fracture in their lives, their friendships, yet still they cannot help but cling to futile hope they you might love them too.  You are poison, Tsukune Aono, and that is why I chose you.  That is why you shall be the Key.”

     Unable to clear his mind of the swirling images from the nightmares, all of the pain that was centered around him and him alone, Tsukune tried to press on. “What do you mean?  What-”

     “This is the end for you.  But don’t worry, soon you will have company.  All because of the love they bear for you, love that you cannot even be bothered enough to return or reject, they will follow you into the depths of despair.  And only then will I leave you to your suffering, to reap your reward for all that you have done to them by your unwillingness to choose.  Farewell, Tsukune Aono.”

     Once again, Mori Retsu disappeared.  Tsukune turned, hoping to find where the villain would go to leave the dimension he had been trapped in, only to find the grey-skinned man behind him, hands held at chest level.  Without warning he lunged, shoving out against Tsukune, propelling him backwards, back towards that abysmal whirlpool, back into the waiting darkness.

     Tsukune fought to catch himself, but it was too late.  All he could see was darkness, and nothing more.

 

******

 

     With a sharp gasp, Moka returned to the world of the living.  She stared at the ceiling of her room without comprehension, trying to remember where she was, what she had been doing.  Shakily, she drew her hand up to her face, dabbing at the tears she found there.  Why was she-

     The dream.  Tsukune, suffering at her hands.  Her friends, all laying on the ground, dead because of her.  The look in Tsukune’s eyes as he died…

     “ _We don’t have time for that_!  _Tsukune’s in danger_ , _and whatever is happening to him_ , _we don’t have time to waste if we intend to stop it_!”

     Blinking in shock, Moka stared down at the rosario she wore around her throat. “What… what do you mean?”

     “ _He was there_ , _in the dream_.  _I talked to him_ , _but he couldn’t remember what had happened to him_ , _or even who he is_.  _This whole time_ , _ever since that battle_ … _he’s been trapped in his own dreams_!  _Mori Retsu did something to him_ , _something that has kept him from coming back to himself_.  _And then Retsu showed up himself_ , _at the fringes of your dream_.  _To take Tsukune away_.”

     Moka gasped as she realized what that could mean. “Could it be… this whole time that we’re been looking for him, he’s been inside Tsukune’s dreams?”

     “ _I though that our fight ended too easily_.  _The moment he attacked Tsukune was the last time he fought at his full power_.  _What I defeated was probably a puppet_ , _left behind to distract us from the truth_.”

     “Then we have to get to Tsukune, now!  Ruby, or Gin, someone has to know where he’s being held!” Moka jumped from her bed, hurrying to change out of her nightgown.  Moments later, she opened the door to her room, rushing outside towards the stairs leading down from the fourth floor.

     She was in such a hurry that she nearly tripped over the body laying in the hall.  Catching herself, she looked down at the still form, dressed in the uniform of a male Yokai student.  Her surprise abated when she noticed the dark hair and the headband holding in place; finding Gin at the girl’s rooms was nothing too unusual, though it was worrying that he showed no signs of the typical blunt-force trauma that would have explained his unconscious state, nor had Moka noticed the usual hubbub that accompanied her upperclassman being caught in his perverted activities. Then, however, she noticed that Gin was clutching something in both hands.  Hurriedly, she turned Gin over, noting that he was still breathing, though slowly, as if in a deep slumber.  Realization beginning to lurk at the edges of her mind, she noticed the two items Gin was holding: the first was an envelope, which had been sealed with a lipstick-marked kiss, and the other, which he hugged close to his chest, was a leather whip, studded with small metal bits.  Normally, such an item in Gin’s possession would have raised many eyebrows among the students of Yokai Academy, but Moka remembered it well.  It was the Belmont, a whip with the power to dispel magical auras.  It was a rare and powerful artifact, usually kept by the Headmaster.  For Gin to have been bringing it here, to her room…

     She grabbed the envelope, opening it and pulling out the letter that was inside it.  She quickly scanned the page, hoping to find a clue to what had brought Gin in search of her, and why he was now laying unconscious on the floor.

      _Gin~_

_I looked for those notes like you asked, but the only thing I could find out about that Retsu character was some very old notes, something about a ‘Key’ and a ‘conduit for suffering.’  Sounds scary!_

_Oh, but I did find out where that Tsukune Aono is being held.  I’ve drawn you a map, but it isn’t very good.  You can’t get there anyways, though.  It’s sealed, by the Headmaster himself!  Don’t think I’ll help you get into there, though.  One date isn’t worth that much trouble!_

_Oh, and speaking of the Headmaster, he wanted me to have you take this package to a girl, Moka Akashiya.  Why you’re the one delivering it to her, I don’t know… maybe you should tell me the next time I see you.  Oh, and it better not be what I think it is, or you’re in trouble!_

     When Moka saw that the note was signed with a cute heart, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes and satisfied herself with dropping the letter onto Gin’s face.  As promised, the second sheet of paper was a crudely drawn map of the Academy’s sub-basements, complete with a few notes on which doors were magically sealed.  The room where Tsukune was being held was clearly marked.  That just left the problem of the Headmaster’s seal…

     Moka glanced down at the Belmont.  If the whip held the power to override the rosario she wore, and the Holy Lock that kept Tsukune’s ghoul-form in check, then perhaps it would be able to open the seals on the doors leading to Tsukune!  She briefly wondered why the Headmaster had intended for Gin to bring the whip to her, but dismissed it as unimportant; all that mattered now was getting the other girls and going to Tsukune.

     “Moka!” The vampire turned to see Kurumu running towards her, concern in her expression.  Gasping for breath, she stopped as she reached Moka to lean against a wall. “Something’s happening!  Everyone’s asleep, even people that were walking in the halls, and nothing wakes them up!” She glanced down at Gin, not surprised to see that he had fallen asleep on the fourth floor of the girls’ dorms. “Like him, actually.  Mizore wasn’t affected, and she’s gone after Yukari and Kokoa, but I was afraid that it meant that Mori Retsu was making his move.”

     Moka nodded, handing the map to Kurumu. “He is.  Tsukune was in my nightmare tonight, the real Tsukune… Retsu has been using him to hide from us, and I think he intends to use him for something worse.  We have to go to him, now, and see if we can wake Tsukune up.  If we can, we can defeat Mori Retsu, and this whole mess will be over with!”

     “Then let’s go!” After Kurumu bent down, pulling the Belmont from Gin’s hands, the pair ran to the stairs, meeting Mizore as she was coming up.  When the snow girl shook her head, Kurumu glanced over at Moka. “It looks like it’s just us, then.”

     “We’ll be fine.” Moka smiled softly, then reached out to take the Belmont from Kurumu.  As soon as her fingers wrapped around its hilt, she transformed, her hair fading to silver and her eyes turning crimson.  The other two girls flinched back at the surge of monstrous power that accompanied the release of the inner Moka, but both recovered quickly, glad to have the support of Moka’s vampiric side.  Offering the other girls a confident smile, Moka laughed darkly. “He’s the one that should be worried.”

     Together, they ran back down the stairs and towards the Academy’s main building, where Tsukune would be waiting.      

 

******

 

     Deep within the lower levels of the Yokai Academy’s sub-basements, hidden within a labyrinth of chambers and heavily warded portals, lay a room almost indistinguishable from the rest, save for its contents: it was entirely bereft of furniture, except for a single bed, but on the floor around that bier was carved a series of finely-runed concentric circles, all of which fairly glowed with mystic power.  Strapped atop the bed was a human boy, dressed in the school’s uniform.  His eyes were closed in slumber, but it was hardly restful, as his skin was pale and covered in sweat, and his head rocked minutely as he groaned from deep within his throat.  At his wrist, he wore a locked chain, emblazoned with images of crosses, which seemed to glow and dim in time with his pained breaths.       
     The other thing that marked this chamber was that it had been personally warded by the academy’s headmaster, a seal that should have been impossible for most monsters to penetrate.

     Around the upper reaches of the room was an observation balcony, obscured by the room’s gloom.  Despite the darkness, the man leaning casually against the railing seemed to have no difficulty in reading the novel he held before him: No Longer Human, by Osamu Dazai.  Lowering the book with a slight smile, he glanced behind him, down at the bier that Tsukune Aono slept upon.  It would be any moment now.

     As if on cue, the body upon the bed grunted loudly.  Convulsing against his bonds, the boy’s head thrashed from side to side, his closed-eyed expression one of terror and agony.  Around the bed, the glowing runes began to spit sparks and brightened enough to illuminate the entire room.  Pausing for only a moment to enjoy the light show, the man slid his book into the breast of his jacket and vaulted over the railing, landing softly on the floor below.

     The glow grew even brighter as the magic the runes contained fought to keep the evil locked within the boy from escaping.  Quickly growing bored with the pointless struggle, the man reached into his other breast pocket, withdrawing the artifact that had allowed him both to enter this chamber, and, days earlier, open the sealed vaults where the Thanatos Phylactery had been kept.  He glanced down at the crucifix-shaped magic talisman, thinking what it had taken to forge this replica of the rosario worn by the headmaster of Yokai Academy.  It would take Hokuto some time to recover from what they’d been forced to do to him to craft it, but in the end it would be worth it.

     Squatting down, he smiled softly at the magic seal that was valiantly resisting Morpheus’ efforts to escape the body of Tsukune Aono.  With all the deliberate slowness of a child pulling wings from an insect, he lowered the crucifix to the outside edge of the final circle.  With an audible ‘click,’ the talisman touched the stone floor, and with a final explosion of light the seal was gone.

     The unconscious body of Tsukune jerked a final time, the sightless eyes shooting open and mouth stretching wide as he uttered a primal, inhuman scream.  As Tsukune sank back into the bed, his body finally still, the watcher rose to his feet, smiling in anticipation as he clutched the magic talisman.  At last, something interesting.

     As he watched, a slow stream of black sand began to stream out of the boy’s gaping mouth, like an inverted hourglass, now pouring faster and faster until the howling mass looked to force Tsukune’s jaws open even wider.  As it rose into the air, the sand remained in constant motion, forming a rotating sphere a few feet above the boy’s form.  Finally the last grains escaped and flew into the air to mill with the rest, and the globe of sand floated forward, off the bier, gradually lowering to the ground as it approached the watcher.  As it came, it began to stretch as it pulled at the poles, transforming into a man-sized pillar as it touched the floor.  There was an explosion, a dull thunderclap, and suddenly another man stood between the watcher and Tsukune.

     For a long moment, the two stood in silence, eyeing each other.  Then, slowly, the younger man raised his hands and began to clap. “Bravo,” he smirked, “I must say, you know how to make an entrance.”

      The grey-skinned man stared at him coldly a moment longer before offering his own smile. “Kiriya Yoshi, how kind of you to welcome me.  I trust you brought what I require?”

     “Got it right here.” Kiriya held the crucifix aloft. “This will allow you to tap into the barrier surrounding the school, and should help you spread your powers to everyone inside until its time to lower the barrier.  It’s all yours… assuming you remember your part of the deal.”

     Mori Retsu glowered at the other man, uncomfortable with Kiriya’s presence.  It was not only the younger man’s unusual eyes, polychromatic and sporting a vertical slit in one eye and a horizontal one in the other, nor the power that he didn’t bother to hide.  It was his calmness, his indifference to the notion that he was putting into play a scheme that would result in genocide.  He showed no raw ambition, no anger, just a childish enthusiasm to see what would happen next. 

      “Don’t worry about that.  After a month of being subjected to my nightmares, every monster in this school will be reduced to mere beasts, unleashing their fury wherever I point them.  I will gladly let them loose on the human world, just as your organization has requested.”  Mori Retsu regretted the necessity of working with Fairy Tale, but they had provided him with all the resources he had needed to infiltrate the school, and the information that had allowed him to begin his formation of the Key, the power source that would enable him to expand his reach to cover the entire campus.  Still, he did not trust Kiriya or his group any further than was absolutely necessary; that was why he had relied on Kiriya to open the vaults where his phylactery had been sealed, but had manipulated a sleepwalker into hiding the precious artifact in a place that he trusted would be out of their reach. “I will put our plans into motion within hours, as soon as my honored guests arrive with the last ingredients I need to finish the formation of the Key.”

     Kiriya smiled, glancing behind him at the door leading out of the room. “Something tells me they’re already on their way.”  He gave the other man a final nod. “I should be going, then.  I’d hate to get caught up in it.”  With a jaunty wave, he moved to the door and left Mori Retsu alone with the body of Tsukune.

     “Soon…” Mori Retsu turned back to the unconscious boy’s form, clenching his fist.  When he opened it, he held a single perfect black feather, which he lowered to the Holy Lock that Tsukune wore around his right wrist.  As it touched the chain, the feather dissolved into grains of ebon sand, cascading over and clinging to the metal, obscuring the crosses.

     “Soon, your friends will come to save you.  Won’t they be surprised?” Mori Retsu laughed loudly, sneering down at the boy on the bed, who slept like the long deceased. “Won’t it be nice to have someone to share your eternal torment with?”

      The monster’s laughter resounded throughout the school, even reaching the three girls who were entering the Academy’s main building, map in hand and looks of determination etched upon their faces.


	10. Fear the Sleeper

**Chapter 9**

**_Fear the Sleeper_ **

 

     He hadn’t surrendered, not yet.  Though the vortex constantly pulled at him, always fighting to consume him, he still had the power to fight it.  As long as he stayed just out of the worst of it, he could hope to escape.  He wasn’t making any progress in that direction, but neither had he slipped back for some time, hanging between life and death.  He knew that was what lay in the center of the black whirlpool: it was the nightmare he would not be able to wake up from, and it hungered for him.

     Tsukune Aono fought it, forcing himself to push harder.  His friends needed him, and unless he could free himself from this darkness he wouldn’t be able to help them.  He hadn’t forgotten Mori Retsu’s final threat, and it compelled him onward, cementing his determination to reach his friends before Retsu could act on his intentions.  He didn’t know if he would be able to forgive himself, otherwise.

     ‘Wait for me, guys.  I’m coming!’

 

******

 

     Together, the three girls sprinted through the winding halls and chambers of the academy’s depths, heedless of defenses or wards that may have been put in place to protect the secrets that were kept there.  So far, they had been lucky; as Mizore shouted out directions from the map she held, each door they came to was already unsealed, some of them even gaping open as if they were being expected.  More worrying was the presence of the Headmaster’s black-suited guardians, all of which lay unconscious upon the ground, some of which bore signs of a struggle.  Unwilling to speak of it, they all harbored fears that Mori Retsu had already escaped, taking Tsukune with him, but they would face that possibility if it emerged.  
     “It’s right up ahead, through that door!” Mizore cautioned the other two, and the trio paused, forcing themselves to recover from their hectic dash through the school.  As their gasping slowed, they exchanged nods, making sure that they were each ready and remembered the plan they had outlined.  If Mori Retsu had been released, then they knew that a fight would be inevitable.  Steeling themselves, they reached the door and pushed it open, stepping into the chamber where Tsukune was supposed to have been slumbering.

     “Welcome, ladies, to the end of your world.  I’ve been expecting you.”

     Spreading out, the three of them glared at Mori Retsu.  He looked much as he had before, at the battle at the cave: the same grey tone to his body, the same arrogant sneer.  The obvious difference, however, was the feeling of overwhelming power emanating from him, such that even vampiric Moka looked surprised.  Their surprise did not escape him, and his grin grew wider. “As you can see, I have no reason to hold back this time, now that you’ve been so kind as to feed my machinations.  I only have one more role for you to fulfill, and then you can enjoy your final rest.”

     Before Moka could respond, Kurumu pointed past Retsu, at the bier behind him and the body lying atop it. “Look!  It’s Tsukune!  He’s still here!” The succubus’ eyes brightened with relief before she turned her gaze back to Retsu, her taloned fingernails extending. “We’re not too late!”

     “No, I would say that you’re just in time.  He still clings to life, though just barely.  Thus, you have made it here in time to join him.”

     Tiring of the monster’s threats, Moka stepped forward, her crimson eyes narrowing. “Why are you doing this?  Why go through all this trouble to target Tsukune?”

     “He talked too much already, don’t encourage him,” Mizore quipped from beside Moka, her hands freezing into claws of ice.

     “It’s simple.  I intend to subject this entire school of monsters to the same sort of pain you’ve felt, by attuning myself to the school’s magic barrier using this artifact,” Retsu stated, holding up the duplicate of the Headmaster’s talisman, “and then, once the constant terror and misery has reduced your classmates’ minds to animal instinct and brutality, loose them upon the human world.  Imagine the feast of terror and agony I shall have then!”  Throwing his head back, he howled with laughter. “And it wouldn’t be possible without you, without your catatonic friend.  He shall be the conduit I need to power my efforts.  As for you…” Mori Retsu leered at them each in turn. “You shall be the power source.  The wealth of suffering I need to bring nightmares to the world!”

     “You’re right, Mizore.  He does talk too much.” Moka stepped forward, clutching the Belmont whip in her left hand and motioning Mori Retsu onward with her right. “Come on, then, and show us how scary you can be, because you’ve not impressed me yet.”

      “Impudent wretch! You don’t know what you bring upon yourself!” The monster glowered at her, but calmed himself, forcing a smile back onto his face. “Very well, then.  Witness your demise.”

      Though he didn’t move, a sound like tearing silk resounded through the room, and slowly a pair of midnight-black wings unfolded behind Mori Retsu, spreading wide and flapping once thunderously.  Turning his face to the side and deliberately covering his mouth, as if hiding a cough, he exhaled loudly into his palm.  That done, he slowly turned his hand towards them, with all the flair of a magician revealing his newest trick.  Gathered in his palm was a clump of black sand, which began to fall downwards.  It never reached the ground, stopping just below Retsu’s knee and collecting as if it were filling an invisible container.  Quickly it rose up to Retsu’s hand, more sand then he possibly could have held, then higher, forming a thick shaft and expanding at the top, taking on the shape of a curved blade.  When it was done, Mori Retsu closed his hand around the staff of a weapon, a wickedly-gleaming scythe.

     “Cower in fear, for I am Morpheus, Herald of Thanatos!” Swinging the scythe sharply down to his right, he closed his eyes and exhaled in ecstasy. “I am a god.”

     “Anyone else think he has serious ego problems?” Kurumu asked, disturbed by the display.

     “Overcompensation, perhaps.” Mizore shook her head slowly.

     “Enough of your banter!  Come and die!” Retsu glanced behind him, sliding the scythe towards the still body of Tsukune. “Unless…”

     “Mizore, now!” Moka barked, and the snow girl nodded.  She did not charge, however; instead, two other forms raced into the room, sprinting directly at Retsu with claws held behind them.  His surprise increased when he realized that they were both clones of Mizore, down to the identical expressions of determination, but as they leapt at him he swung into action.  The scythe arced before him, catching both clones across their waists and continuing on without slowing.  Instantly, both copies of Mizore shattered into shards of ice, but as the pieces fell they reformed, extending into the shape of a massive hand that caught Retsu around the waist.

     Kurumu literally dove into the action, her bat-like wings sprouting from her back and propelling her into the air.  She swooped down at him, claws held before her, aiming at his face.  She never reached him, however, as he swung his hand before him, shattering the frozen hand into a wave of frost and shards that pelted Kurumu, blinding her.  Moka moved to attack in place of the succubus, but suddenly he was gone. ‘So fast!  Where did-’

     “Enough of your tricks, girl.” Mizore’s eyes widened as she heard the voice behind her. “You’ll be first.”

     “Mizore, no!” Both of Moka and Kurumu turned, lunging back towards their friend, but they were too slow, far too slow.

     The scythe swung in a flat arc behind Mizore, passing through her completely at chest level.

     There was no blood, no sign that she had been harmed, but still Mizore collapsed to the ground, her eyes sliding closed.  Retsu chuckled as she fell, vanishing again before she struck the ground.  Kurumu ran to her fallen friend, but Moka whirled, searching for the villain with an expression saturated with hatred.  When she found him standing behind the bier, she hesitated, shocked at what he was doing. 

     “Don’t worry for her, she is only sleeping,” Mori Retsu addressed Kurumu, who was kneeling at Mizore’s side.  Indeed, the snow girl was breathing, painfully slowly, but showed no other sign of life.  “No, you should envy her, truly.”  Retsu held his hand out before him, extending it over Tsukune’s chest.  Above it floated an orb of purest white light, the size of a schoolroom globe and pulsing to match the slowed rhythm of Mizore’s heart.  He removed his hand, and the orb glided down, disappearing into Tsukune’s chest. “She gets to be the first to join with him.”

     Kurumu stood up from Mizore’s side, her head hanging low. “It’ll be up to you, Moka,” she whispered, flexing her hands.  The vampire didn’t acknowledge her, instead charging at the bier, legs tensed as she prepared to leap over it.  Just as she took to the air, Kurumu struck, thick veins of darkness sprouting from the ground around Mori Retsu and wrapping around him, trapping his arms to his sides, binding the scythe.  He glanced down at his weapon, his expression one of panic, and then up into the air as Moka’s foot descended towards his face.

     “Your powers of illusion have no hold over me, little succubus.”  The voice in Kurumu’s ear made her freeze, staring in shock as Moka’s attack struck the ground where Mori Retsu had been standing. “Now, let me give you to your love.”

     Moka whirled, seeing the fading light in Kurumu’s eyes as she toppled forward, the scythe finishing its arc, the orb of pure black appearing over Retsu’s open left hand, the hungry leer upon his face.  She rounded the bier in an instant, dashing towards him without any thought to defense, only the desire to see his blood. “Damn you!” He didn’t move as she came, taunting her with his smile, scythe at the ready.

     Her first strike, a kick aimed at his midsection, was intercepted by the handle of the scythe.  With some satisfaction, Moka noted his loud grunt; he had underestimated her, and that would be fatal.  Seizing the opportunity, she launched a volley of attacks, hoping to catch him off guard with her speed as well as her power.  There, though, he proved far more prepared, narrowly dodging each swing and kick, retreating back towards the room’s entrance.

     Determined to force him off balance, Moka swept her leg out at his ankles.  Retsu managed to hop backward in time, but the orb he held aloft and his unwieldy weapon had made him top-heavy, and his heel caught, pitching him backwards.  Moka pounced at the moment of weakness, diving at him, drawing her fist back to strike at his face.

     Again, his look of surprise gave way to smug satisfaction.  Quickly he raised his left hand, holding the black sphere he had drawn from Kurumu in front of his face. “Don’t touch!” Moka jerked her hand to the side, trying to miss it, just barely grazing-

     _She could feel Kurumu’s pain_ , _her fear_.  _She could feel the love Kurumu had for Tsukune_ , _and the trepidation it caused_.  _She could feel the loneliness_ , _the hope_ , _the despair_ …

      The fist, wrapped around the handle of the scythe, caught Moka in the stomach, flinging her back across the room.  She slammed into the bier that held Tsukune, the straps securing him to it the only thing keeping him from being forced off of it.  Coughing as she tried to force down the bile that had risen in her throat, Moka glanced up to see Mori Retsu standing before her, scythe held behind him in preparation for the final blow.  Desperately she threw herself to the side, pushing herself away as she readied her trump card for her next gambit.

     The sharp crack echoed through the room, and Mori Retsu looked down at the studded leather cord wrapped around the handle of his scythe. “Do you really think that will help?” he asked, unconcerned.

     “It will keep you from moving so fast.  You can only come at me head on now, and it won’t be easy for you to swing that thing.  That’s all I need.” Moka pulled on the Belmont, drawing it taut.

     “Maybe.  Or..”  Mori Retsu leaned back, pulling Moka forward as he shifted his stance.  With all his weight on one leg, he lashed out with the other, slamming his foot into the stretched whip and pushing it to the side.  Unprepared for the powerful tug, Moka’s hands slipped on the handle of the Belmont, and despite her efforts the whip was pulled from her hands.

     “No-!” Already the transformation was occurring, her hair darkening, her eyes losing their crimson sheen.  She fell forward, grasping at the receding handle too late to catch it.  Without warning, darkness interposed itself between her and the Belmont, and she glanced up to see the gleeful smile of Mori Retsu, his weapon held ready behind him.

     “I had been waiting for that to happen.”

     Moka never felt the touch of the blade, never felt herself reach the ground.  All she knew was the grasping darkness, and then nothing at all.

     Mori Retsu let the scythe fall to the ground, extending his right hand to collect the energy of the fallen vampire.  Immediately the orb began to form above his hand, scarlet shot through with silver.  It was perfect.

     He walked towards Tsukune’s prone body, stopping only to kick the Belmont into a dark corner of the room like a dead serpent, an act more of spite than any concern.  Nothing could stop him now, and there were only a couple of tasks left.  First, though, came the union.  He let both orbs slide down into Tsukune, first the black and then the scarlet, before dusting his hands and reaching into a pocket to grasp the crucifix he had kept there.

     “Now that the pain of living and the pain of dreaming mingle, so shall the Key be completed.  Let their pain fill you, and deliver it unto me, so that my will shall be done.” Mori Retsu intoned the ritual words gravely, smiling down at Tsukune.  Everything had led up to this: the nightmares that he had given the girls, his deliberately designed initial battle with Moka and possession of Tsukune, his efforts to alter the trio’s memories of Tsukune’s reaction.  Now, the essences of the girls would weigh Tsukune’s soul down into the heart of the River Lethe, and the conduit would then be ready.  All he would need to do then would be to sever Tsukune’s connection to the living world, and with a gesture the scythe flew into his empty hand, ready to complete that task.

     First, though, he needed to prepare his connection to the school’s magic barrier.  That would give the other ritual time to complete, and then he could unleash his newfound power onto all of those who dwelt within the borders of the Yokai Academy, condemning them to troubled slumber until he chose to release them onto the human world.  Raising the magic talisman, he could feel its power, its bond with the magic that permeated the school, and began to let it infuse him with that connection.

     He glanced down at Tsukune, smiling coldly. “Rest well.”  Then he closed his eyes, and let his mind soar outward, to grasp the essences of all the monsters of Yokai Academy.  He could feel them all, and let his darkness begin to seep into them, marking them with his power, readying to receive his dark visions.

     Nothing could stop him now.


	11. Lips So Cold

**Chapter 10**

**_Lips So Cold_ **

 

     Despite his struggles, Tsukune found himself no closer to the speck of light that was the opening of the vortex, far above him.  Nor, from what he could tell, had he drawn any closer to the oblivion that waited below, relentlessly tugging at him.  He couldn’t know how long he had fought against it; it could have been minutes, or days.  The only thing that had saved him, he knew, was his determination to escape and help his friends.  Without that drive, he would have succumbed long ago, sinking into that infinite darkness.

     Suddenly, he could see something else, another spot of light that had detached itself from the opening of the vortex to drift downwards, towards him.  It was a globe of absolute white, white so pure it felt cold.  Tsukune’s eyes widened as he realized where he had seen that color, and he feared that he knew where it had come from.  Could it be?  Had Mori Retsu delivered on his promise, and sent Tsukune’s friends to join him in this abyss?

     As he watched, Tsukune realized that unlike his own efforts, the orb that embodied Mizore’s essence was making no effort to resist the pull of the vortex, instead letting itself be caught up in the circular pull of the darkness, whirling around and around the edges.  With a surge of fear, Tsukune realized that it would miss him completely, dropping past him into howling core of the black whirlpool.  If that happened, did that mean that Mizore would be-

     Tsukune lunged, pulling with all his effort to reach that glowing sphere, hoping to draw Mizore’s essence to him, to save her from whatever fate awaited those who fell into the heart of the abyss.  He swung desperately, missing; the current had taken her too far away, and she whirled past and around him, dropping lower.  As she came back again, he tensed his muscles, letting the whirlpool draw him closer so that he could concentrate all his energy into one powerful surge.  As he saw the blur of white in the corner of his eye, he threw himself at the whirlpool’s wall, flailing out in the hopes of pulling that snow-white globe to him.

     His fingers grazed its edge, and he felt himself being pulled into it, drawn away from the vortex and the darkness, into the realm of snow and solitude.

******

When Tsukune could see anything aside from blinding white, he realized that he was standing in a long hallway which was lined with pillars and ended at a door under an elegant arch.  Everything he could see had a sheen to it, like sunlight off of melting ice, and he remembered where he had seen this place before.  It was the castle of the Snow Priestess, where he and his friends had come to rescue Mizore from her arranged marriage to an operative of Fairy Tale.  This was near where he had fought Miyabi Fujusaki, after Mizore had revealed to them what she had suffered at his hands.

     Tsukune froze as he heard the footstep behind him, and turned, only to stare into his own eyes.  Without pausing or acknowledging his doppelganger, the copy of Tsukune walked past him, staring straight ahead at the door that would lead him to Mizore’s chamber.  For just a brief moment, the clone seemed to shimmer like wet oil, revealing the grey tone to his skin.      

     That meant that this was the nightmare he had witnessed, Mizore’s dream about being rejected by him and their friends.  That meant that somewhere, just ahead, was a room where Mizore was being tormented by Fujusaki and Kotsubo.  And, when the dream reached its climax, Mizore would be cast out of the tower, to fall down onto the ice below.

     He remembered the vortex, and realized that this time she wouldn’t wake up from that ending.

     “Hey, you.”

     The clone of Tsukune turned at the call, mouth twisted in an impatient sneer at being interrupted.  That expression fell from that all-too-familiar face just a second before Tsukune’s fiat reached it, and the clone was thrown across the chamber into a pillar.  When it impacted against the stone, it burst like a water balloon, spilling a plume of black sand onto the shining floor.

     ‘Wait for me, Mizore,’ Tsukune thought, sprinting at the door at the end of the hall. ‘I’m coming.’

 

******

 

     Mizore Shirayuki sprinted for the door leading out of the bedroom that she had found herself trapped in.  She reached it in an instant, but as she gripped the door handle she felt something thick wrap itself around her trailing arm, yanking her away from her desired refuge.  She was dragged back into the center of the room as another squid-like tentacle wrapped itself around her other arm, pulling strongly enough to turn her to face her assailant. 

     “It’s been a while, hunh, Shirayuki?” Mizore stared in horror at the angular face of Mr. Kotsubo, Yokai Academy’s former gym teacher.  She recoiled in disgust as the tip of one of the kraken’s tentacles brushed against her cheek, and Kotsubo leered at her reaction. “Funny how we keep meeting this way.  Maybe it’s destiny.”

     The sound of shattering ice drew her attention, and she watched as Miyabi Fujusaki walked through a gap in the ice wall she had formed to protect herself from him, casually brushing melting shards from the lapel of his black suit.  He offered her a wan smile as he advanced, indifferent to her growing terror. “You really shouldn’t resist.  This is the best possible future for you.  I’ll take good care of you, and your homeland.  You can’t go back, not to the way you were.”  He reached out to her, and she winced as his hand came to rest on her shoulder. “But if you don’t trust me… why don’t you ask him?”

     Mizore glanced to her side, following Fujusaki’s gesture.  Her eyes widened as she saw Tsukune standing there, a look of wild rage and hatred on his face.  Despite Fujusaki’s comment, however, Tsukune was not looking at her.  Instead, he snarled as he took one step towards the black-suited man, fist drawn back and hints of crimson shimmering in his eyes.

     “Wh- What?” Kotsubo demanded as Fujusaki collapsed to the ground, black blood oozing from his mouth and nose. “That’s not how it’s supposed to go!”

     “Sorry.” Tsukune turned his gaze on the kraken, and Kotsubo recoiled from the dark power he felt emanating from the boy. “I won’t let you hurt Mizore any more.”

     “Fine, then, she can watch you die!” Shoving Mizore aside, Kotsubo lashed out with his tentacles, slashing them at Tsukune’s chest.  He had not compensated for Tsukune’s speed, and each attack only met air.  Snarling in frustration, Kotsubo tried again, but this time Tsukune changed tactics, pulling Fujusaki from the floor and holding him before him as a human shield.  He grunted as he felt the blows smash into Fujusaki’s back, pushing him back as well, but he pressed on, driving on towards the kraken.  Kotsubo didn’t have time for a third wave of attacks as the other two men slammed into him, lifting the kraken from his feet and back towards the room’s window.  As he heard the glass shatter, Tsukune shoved up and away, throwing Fujusaki towards the open sky.  Kotsubo’s tentacles thrashed as he desperately tried to grab onto anything that could save him, onto Tsukune, but all but instantly the two men fell out of sight, plummeting towards the spikes of ice far below.

     Tsukune panted as he felt the cost of calling upon the vampiric blood that Moka had given to him, the source of his ghoulish power.  Restraining the whispering voices in his head calling for blood and destruction, Tsukune pushed himself up, using the windowsill as a hold.  As he reached his feet, he looked out the window, staring in mortified shock at the black vortex that was descending upon the city of the yuki-onna.

     It hadn’t worked.  He had saved Mizore, but the dream was still decaying, and they were falling towards oblivion.

     A muffled sob drew Tsukune’s attention away from the window, back to where Mizore was laying in a crumpled heap.  Compassion in his eyes, Tsukune moved towards her to comfort her, hoping at least to take away her pain for what time was left to them.  As he neared her, however, she flinched away, shaking her head.

     “ _Dirtied_ … _unworthy_ … _violated_ …” 

     Tsukune paused as he heard the cold voices.  Mizore had used those words to describe herself, he remembered, when they had come to this place.  She had cast herself from the window even as he and the others had arrived to rescue her, unwilling to face the shameful memories she carried from her time in Fujusaki’s hands.  Kurumu had rescued her then, but it seemed that those wounds had never healed.

     Tsukune remembered how it felt, watching Mizore fall from that window.  He had wanted to jump out after her, just as Kurumu had, but had been frozen in abject horror.  He had felt so guilty, so heartbroken, so very cold…

     “No, Mizore,” he said, kneeling before her.  Her eyes opened at the faint patter of a tear dropping to the ground, and she looked up to see the pain he wore openly upon his face. “You’re wrong.  I’m the one who’s not worthy.”

     “Tsukune…” she said, leaning forward as if to comfort him instead.  As she did, he fell towards her, wrapping his arms tightly around her frame, clutching her to him. 

     “I’m so sorry, Mizore.  I’m so sorry.” He remembered what Kurumu had done then, how she had brought Mizore back to them in spirit even as she had rescued her from plummeting to her demise.  Perhaps it would work again, work better since it was he who was responsible for her pain…

     “Mizore…” The snow maiden looked up as he relaxed his grip, pressing her away slightly.  Her ice-blue eyes widened as she saw him leaning towards her, hesitating as if seeking permission.  When she didn’t pull away, he completed the motion, lowering his lips to hers.

     His first thought was that her lips felt cold, yet so soft.  His second thought was that it felt good to hold her, to know that just for now he could protect her.  His last was something akin to ‘Uh oh, what did I just-’

     The world exploded into pure white light.

 

******

 

     Mori Retsu sighed with pleasure as he felt the magic linking him to the entire population of Yokai Academy grow to completion.  He could feel them all, witness their petty nightmares, feel their hopes decaying and their dreams dying.  It was magnificent.  Now, all that was left was to sever Tsukune Aono’s connection to the waking world, and he would be ready to begin unleashing his powers without restraint.

     As he raised his scythe, he looked down at Tsukune’s slumbering body. “It’s been a pleasure,” he said mockingly, at then-

     He barely had time to dodge as the spears of ice shot through where he had been standing, an attack that would have impaled him had he not sensed it coming.  Without turning to face his assailant, he sighed loudly. “I’ve already put you to bed, little one, so why are you awake?”

     Behind him, Mizore Shirayuki finished climbing to her feet, frozen hand outstretched.  Chewing on the stick of her sucker, she glared severely at Mori Retsu, pulling on her power to strengthen her further.  She still felt the effects of the week that had passed without her getting a full night’s rest, but no longer did she feel clouded and wearied by sadness and pain. “I won’t let you hurt him.  You’re finished.”

     “Oh, I see!” Mori Retsu turned to face her, shaking his head as he offered her a wide smile. “He rejected you, cast you from his world of dreams!  How sad that must be.”

     She remembered what had happened in her nightmare.  She remembered how Tsukune had come to save her, had fought off Fujusaki and Kotsubo, and how he had comforted her.  She remembered…

     _His lips were so soft_ … _so warm_ …

      “No,” said Mizore, blushing fiercely even as she met the villain’s gaze. “He accepted me.  And that’s why I won’t let you lay a finger on him.”

     “You, alone?  You don’t stand a chance.  You should have kept dreaming.” Retsu clutched his scythe before him, wings flexing wide. “But, if it’s your wish, I shall send you to your final slumber without your love.”

     Her only response was to send more ice lancing his way, and he charged past it, laughing the whole time.


	12. Dream Redeemer

**Chapter 11**

**_Dream Redeemer_ **

 

     When Tsukune returned to the dark vortex, he was immediately struck by a wave of pain inside his head.  He couldn’t remember what had happened… only reaching out for the orb that had been Mizore’s dream, and then nothing.  Had he saved her, or had she slipped past him, down towards-

     A flash of motion out of the corner of his eye drew Tsukune’s attention, and he tried to turn to face it unsuccessfully.  There was another flash, and Tsukune turned the other direction, looking above him to find a crimson orb descending down the vortex.  Then, the other one must have been…

     He glanced down, and to his horror saw an orb of warm darkness, easily distinguishable from the cold swirling shadows around it, just below him.  That had to be Kurumu, then!  She had already gone past him, and would soon fall into the heart of the vortex.  He had to save her, before she slipped out of his reach forever.

     He lunged down towards the black orb, disregarding the fact that it brought him closer to the horror at the bottom of the whirlpool.  All that mattered was saving his friends, and he wouldn’t let Kurumu fade away because of him.  Desperately he reached out, feeling the pull of the vortex accelerate, the spinning darkness around him whirl madly.  Almost there…

     His finger brushed the orb, and he was drawn into it, away from the maelstrom of darkness and into a world of bitter rejection and fear.  

 

******

 

     Kurumu stared in shock as she felt the hands dragging her out of her room, outside and towards the school’s athletic yard.  Her head spun as she heard the words Tsukune had uttered, over and over again.

      “ _I hate you_ … _I love Moka_ … _I hate you_ …”

     “You heard him, didn’t you?”

     Kurumu raised her head, meeting the cold eyes of Moka Akashiya.  Though she was in her usual state, the rosario still sitting at the base of her throat, the vampire wore a haughty expression that would have felt more at home on the face of her unsealed self.  Moka slid her hand up the arm of the boy beside her, deliberately holding him close to her. “Tsukune loves me, Kurumu.  He can’t even bring himself to say that he likes you, let alone loves you.”  Neither of them seemed to notice the figure coming up behind them.

     Kurumu glanced at the boy beside Moka, and into the eyes of Tsukune Aono, no longer hazed by her power, but full of scorn and anger.  He sneered down at her, shaking his head. “What was it you said, Kurumu?  That you wanted to enslave all the boys of Yokai, and that surely one of them would be monster enough to be your ‘Mate of Fate?’  He shook his head, lip twisted in disgust. “Sorry, Kurumu.  I’m a human.  But maybe-”

     “Maybe you’re human,” growled a voice from behind the scornful Tsukune, “but right now, I’m not.”

      Both the Tsukune and the Moka standing before Kurumu turned at the sound of the voice, revealing another Tsukune, his eyes dimly glowing red as his vampiric blood fought him for dominance.  Before he could utter another word, the Tsukune closest to Kurumu fell back from a monstrous right hook, dissolving as he collapsed into a plume of black sand.

     “What is this?” screamed Moka, eyes livid.  “Get them!” She turned and motioned back towards the teeming mass of male Yokai students, who surged forward as one.

     “Sorry,” Tsukune said, and shoved hard, propelling the clone of Moka towards the crowd.  Without stopping to see if it slowed the mass of students, he grabbed Kurumu’s wrist and drew her to her feet, pulling her back towards the girls’ dorms.  “Come on, we have to get somewhere safe!”

     The two of them sprinted away from the field, hearing the rumble of hundreds of feet behind them.  Desperate, Tsukune stopped to sweep Kurumu up into his arms, and then called upon his ghoulish powers to lend him speed as he darted towards the dorms.  All the other doors were closed, and Tsukune knew that in this nightmare they would all be locked, save one.  Hoping he remembered the way correctly, he hurried towards Kurumu’s room, the sound of the stampeding feet receding but not stopping.

     Moments later, the two were inside Kurumu’s bedroom, and after letting Kurumu down Tsukune locked the door and leaned against it for good measure.  It wouldn’t hold out long, he knew, if the other students tried to force their way in.  But, as he looked out of Kurumu’s pink-curtained window, he realized that they didn’t have long anyways: outside he could see the black vortex descending from the sky.

     He glanced at Kurumu as he heard a soft sniffle.  Confused, he reached out to touch her shoulder, but she moved further away, turning around and plopping down onto her bed.  She refused to meet his gaze, looking instead at a picture upon her desk.  Finally she spoke, haltingly. “Thank you, Tsukune… but it’s okay.”

     “What do you mean?” Tsukune demanded, as her felt the first fist pound against the door behind him. “I’m not going to leave you here, Kurumu.”

     “It’s okay,” she insisted, shaking her head. “This is good enough.  Thank you for being so kind to me, for rescuing me, but you shouldn’t have come.  I’m not afraid anymore.” She looked up at him, and the tears collecting at the sides of her eyes revealed her lie. “So, go on.  Moka needs you.”

     “What?  Are you crazy?” Tsukune shouted, jerking as he felt the pummeling fists through the door. “There’s no way I’d just leave you to face them, Kurumu!”

     “I know this is just a dream, Tsukune.  And I’m not worried.  You saved me from the worst of it, and you came to help me, but I’m afraid that Moka will need your help too.  And… I know that you…” Kurumu stood and turned away, looking out the window without seeming to see the vortex beginning to tear at the fabric of the dream. “I know that you love Moka, Tsukune.  I’ve accepted that now.  I’m… happy for you.”

     Tsukune felt a cold chill run down his spine.  He could remember watching this nightmare before, and could remember what happened before Kurumu had been dragged into the athletic yard.  He remembered her begging him to say “I like you,” such a simple thing, yet he hadn’t.  That had been real, he knew; though he couldn’t remember the event personally, probably an aftereffect of Kurumu accidentally using her power on him, he had felt the veracity of the event when he had witnessed it.

     He winced in pain, and not from the door slamming against his back.  He was to blame for all this.  Images flashed through his mind, all the times that Kurumu had protected him, risked her life for his, reached out for him when he had drawn away from everyone else.  He had not been able to return her emotions, but had instead felt the weight of them and ran away.  She had been with him almost as long as Moka had, and he couldn’t even bring himself to let her know that he cared for her… and he did.  Maybe not entirely the way she wanted, but he knew he hadn’t quite figured that out yet.  He did love Moka, but he couldn’t dismiss the fact that he cared deeply for Kurumu too, more than he had been able to admit even to himself.

     “Dummy,” he whispered, and she turned to him in shock, not bothering to hide her tears. “Would it have mattered if I had said it?” With his head lowered as he braced himself against the force pushing against the door, he couldn’t see the spike of pain in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Kurumu, but it wouldn’t have been real.”  When he met her eyes, she expected to see scorn, to see indifference, but was surprised to find deep compassion and understanding.  He smiled at her gently, but still his words wounded her. “It only counts if I say it myself, by my own will.”

     Tsukune heard the crunch as the door began to splinter and separate from the frame, and knew that he had run out of time.  He lunged forward as it gave way, and wrapped his arms around Kurumu tightly.  He had no regrets, not now.  “Which is why I’m saying it now.”  He felt her stiffen as his meaning began to sink in, but she didn’t try to stop him.

     “I love you, Kurumu.”

     The world exploded into silky darkness, and was gone.    

 

******

 

              Mizore panted for breath as she stared at her opponent, water dripping from her ice claws to pool upon the floor.  She had been stretched too far, she knew.  Without rest, without a stable source of water aside from the moisture in the air and her own body, she couldn’t last long.  Especially against an enemy as strong as Mori Retsu, who smiled at her without a hint of stress or weariness.

     “Is that all?  I’m rather disappointed, really.  I can see why Tsukune has chosen Moka over you; at least she can act on her promises to protect him.”

     “You haven’t touched him yet,” Mizore snarled, trying to force her body to recover all the energy it could while the villain mocked her.

     “No, though I believe it’s about time for that.  But really, why should you care anyways?  Or is that the reason that you’re standing before me now, instead of with him in the dream?” Mori Retsu laughed loud and long before continuing. “His agony was supposed to draw all of you to him, so that you could suffer together.  If you managed to escape the heart of the River Lethe, that means that neither of you must have cared for the other after all!”

     “No.”

     Both Mizore and the villain froze at the sound of the other voice.  Weakly climbing to her feet, but with determination gleaming in her violet eyes, Kurumu faced the villain with a grin of triumph.  “We’re not here because we don’t care for Tsukune,” she announced, her fingernails extending as she shifted her stance, ready to lunge at Mori Retsu. “We’re here because of how much he cares for us.”  She shared a glance and a nod with Mizore, and the two girls prepared themselves to push the villain back, away from Tsukune.

     “Do you mean to say that he is still stringing you along?”  Mori Retsu glanced back at Tsukune, his arrogant expression giving way to a look of genuine surprise. “And to think he would call _me_ a monster.”  Returning to the task at hand, he sneered at the two girls. “Very well, then, so be it.  Tsukune ends up with Moka after all!  I doubt anyone is surprised.” His hand tightened on the shaft of his scythe, and he tensed to charge at the pair. “But, if you trust in him so much, let us see if he leaves her to rescue you!”

     With that, he dashed forward, and the battle was resumed.


	13. Eucatastrophe

**Chapter 12**

**_Eucatastrophe_ **

****

     Once again, as Tsukune returned to the vortex he was immediately consumed by agony.  He couldn’t remember what had happened when he had touched the black globe, but it was no longer present, and he could only hope that he had helped Kurumu escape.  That left only Moka, but where was the orb of her essence?  He didn’t see it above him, or circling around him, which meant…

      A quick glance downwards, towards the core of the whirlpool, revealed what he had feared above all.  There, far below him, was the scarlet globe, its color looking washed out and weak as it fell faster and further away.  Without stopping to think, Tsukune threw himself in that direction, struggling to sink faster, feeling the vortex eagerly accept his new direction.  Though he instantly began to catch up to the globe, the vortex quickly began to grow more narrow, and Tsukune squeezed his arms against his sides to avoid brushing against the shadows lining the whirlpool.

     As he fell, Tsukune felt the power of the vortex begin to sink into him.  He began to feel faint, almost numbed, and the lack of sensation grew the further he fell.  His heart grew heavy, and a depressed lethargy began to overtake his desire to reach Moka.  Soon, he knew, there would be nothing left of him but pain and doubt, but still he fought.

     As the darkness closed in on him, he reached out one hand, seeing the pale red light shine through his fingers.  As his eyes closed drowsily, he started to wonder what he had been doing, why he hadn’t just given in and slept.  It would be so easy-

     His hand touched the scarlet orb, and he was pulled into a world of fear and anger, despair and denial.

 

******

 

     Tsukune arrived in Moka’s dream just in time to watch himself die.  Again, there was the chained ghostly version of Moka, the manifestation of her outer personality and the primary victim of the dream, attached to a copy of herself.  That copy was standing up from the body of Tsukune, pulling her hand away from the scalpel jutting from his chest.  Tearing his eyes away from the scene, he began to search for the Moka that had been the embodiment of her inner personality, but unlike his previous visit she wasn’t standing nearby.  He had hoped that she would be able to help him pull her other self out of the dream, but as he turned to search behind him those hopes began to wane.  He froze as he heard the quiet roar, and as the dream broke apart and reformed into the scene that had taken place at Mori Retsu’s lair, he saw what he had been afraid of.

     Not too far away, the vortex had touched down, and was already growing as it consumed the dream around it.

     “Shall we have some fun with him, girls?” Tsukune turned to see himself being held aloft by Mori Retsu, who was smiling viciously at Moka, Kurumu, and Mizore. “Shall we see what he truly fears most?”

     The three girls lunged forward, trying to save Tsukune from Retsu’s torture, but they were too late.  Tsukune watched as his body began to thrash, and he knew what had gone through his mind at that moment: a vision of himself, standing over his friends and all the other people he knew at Yokai Academy, having succumbed to his ghoulish nature.  That had been the moment that Mori Retsu had entered into his mind, and had stripped him of his memories.

    “No!  No!  Moka, no!  …DON’T KILL ME!”

     “Do you hear that?” Mori Retsu stared directly at Moka, a triumphant grin upon his face. “It seems what he truly fears most… _is you_!”

     Tsukune froze as he considered those words.  It was a lie, fabricated to hurt Moka.  It had been him hurting her in the dream, not the other way around.  Retsu had twisted her memories of that battle, and somehow Tsukune knew that the other girls had suffered the same manipulation.  His fists tightened as he thought about all that the monster had inflicted upon his friends.  There would be a reckoning, he swore.

     “ _You shouldn’t be here_ , _Tsukune_.”

     He turned to face the inner Moka, who was staring at the vortex as it slowly drew nearer, eating at the edges of the dream.  She shook her head, a melancholic smile passing across her face. “ _But since you’re here_ , _get her and get out of here_.  _It won’t take long for this all to fall apart_ , _and there’s no going back if that happens_.”

     “What are you talking about?” Tsukune demanded, stepping towards her and grabbing her wrist.  She glanced down at the offending hand, but he ignored her hint, instead staring directly at her face. “You have to come with us.”

     “ _You’ve not been paying attention_ , _have you_?” The crimson eyes met his for just a moment, and in them he thought he saw the pain he knew she was repressing.  “ _You can’t pull us both out of this dream_ , _because this isn’t my nightmare in the first place_.  _Every time before_ , _the dream ended when the thing she feared most happened_ , _which means that it’s tied to her mind_ , _not mine_.  _Even if you can figure out how to break her free of it_ , _I don’t think there’s any way for me to leave_.”  She laughed, ripping her arm out of his hand.  “ _Anyways_ , _having me along wouldn’t help_ , _Tsukune_.  _Haven’t you noticed what it is that she’s afraid of_?  _It’s me_.”    

     “You’re wrong.  That’s not-”

     Snarling, the vampire reached out to shove him towards the dream behind him. “ _Go_ , _now_!  _I’ll buy you all the time I can_ , _just go to her now_!”

     Unable to believe what he was hearing, Tsukune shook his head. “You can’t stop that thing!  Come on, we have to-”

     “ _Goodbye_ , _Tsukune Aono_.  _It’s been fun_.”  She gave him a sad smile, and was gone.  Faint silver light began to shine from the corners of the dream, and the vortex seemed to slow, as if something was working to halt its progress.

     Tsukune looked around desperately for the vampire, but could find no signs of where she had gone.  Growling in frustration, he turned and dashed towards the outer Moka’s dream, hoping that he could save her in time to come back for her other personality.  It wasn’t as simple as she had believed, he knew.

      “Tsukune, no!”  As Tsukune arrived at the scene of the dream’s battle, he realized that he was nearly too late.  The only ones remaining were the inner Moka’s doppelganger, the chained outer Moka, and his ghoulish form.  The vampire and the ghoul were fighting with unrestrained fury, but he knew it would end soon.  As he watched, Moka avoided one attack only to be caught by another, the ghoul tearing through the cloth of the school uniform she wore, blood quickly staining its jagged edges.  Her eyes instantly dimmed as the blindness affected her, no doubt a power granted to his ghoul form by the monster that had possessed him.

     Even blinded, Moka was skilled enough to avoid her opponent’s attacks.  It wouldn’t last, Tsukune knew.  Any moment now, she would trip, and then…    

     The root caught her foot, and the vampire lurched backwards, but did not fall.  Instead, she lashed out blindly, the killing blow.  The Moka chained behind her screamed in fear as she heard the sound of the impact, closing her eyes to hide the sight of Tsukune’s death.  All was still for a moment, and Moka’s outer personality opened her eyes, terrified of what she would see but unable to stop herself.

     There was her inner form, arm stretched towards Tsukune.  There was the ghoul, eyes looking down at the hand that had penetrated his chest.  And there, behind him…

     The ghoul collapsed into black sand as Tsukune drew his arm back through it.  He smiled softly at the chained Moka, ignoring the dream’s copy of her, her pointed hand still inches away from where the ghoul had been standing.  “She was right, you know.  Back at the fight with Mido.”  He stepped up to the chained Moka, and reached down to the chains that bound her.  “I would rather have died than hurt my friends.  I don’t blame you, or her, Moka.  I never have.”  He flexed, straining to break the chains as the red of his eyes flashed with the effort.

     “Tsukune, behind you!” Moka shouted, staring past his shoulder.  Tsukune turned just enough to see the dream’s inner Moka standing over him, grinning hungrily, hand held flat as a blade and pulled back to impale him.  He had no chance to move, and even if he did he knew that the attack would only find Moka instead.  Accepting his fate, he watched the blow come without flinching.

     “ _Watch out_ , _you fool_!”

     The dream’s copy of the inner Moka flew to the side as the kick struck her.  She struck the ground with shattering force, and instantly exploded into black sand, spreading across the stony earth.  Tsukune looked up to see the fiercely smiling vampire standing over him as she brought her foot back to the earth. “ _All that training_ , _and this is all you’re capable of_?  _I expect better of you_ , _Tsukune_.”

     Tsukune gave her a sheepish smile before pulling hard, feeling the chain give way in his hands.  “It was you, and I didn’t want to have to hurt her, even though I knew it was just part of the dream.”  He was pushed backwards as the outer portion of Moka’s personality lunged forward, tackling him with an embrace the moment she was free from the chains.

     “ _You tell me that I should kill you if you try to hurt your friends_ , _and then sit down and die when I do the same_?  _Practice what you preach_.” Despite the harsh criticism, the silver-haired vampire smiled down at him and her other half.

     “Wait… what’s that?” the outer Moka asked, pointing behind her vampiric self.  Both Tsukune and the vampire turned, and to their horror they saw the vortex, which had begun to expand again rapidly.  Soon it would reach them, they knew.

     “ _It’s the end_.”  The silver-haired vampire nodded down at Tsukune with the barest of smiles, but he could see the resignation in her eyes. “ _Go on_ , _get out of here_.  _I can hold it off long enough_ , _if you leave right now_.”

     “No!”

     The vampire’s crimson eyes widened as she stared down at the hand clutching her shoulder. “ _What_ … _what are you doing_?  _We don’t have time for this!_ ”

     The outer Moka glared at her with unrelenting resolve, refusing to let go.  “If I go, you’re coming too.  You’re part of me, you know.  I need you.”  She stared into the eyes of her other self, and saw the pain and uncertainty lurking inside. “We both need you.”

     “You heard her.”  Tsukune stood up, dusting himself off with a smile.  “All of us, or none.”  He stepped forward, reaching out with both hands.  “Come on, let’s leave this nightmare behind us.”

     The outer Moka grabbed his hand, beaming at him, and after a moment the other Moka took the other hand, facing him and her other self with the ghost of a smile, contended and relieved.  As their hands came together, Tsukune faced the vortex with a grin.  It didn’t know what it was up against.

     The dream exploded into a wave of scarlet and silver.  For a second, the vortex grasped at the wave of color, seeking to draw it in, pull it down into the depths of despair.  A moment later, however, the funnel of darkness collapsed, severed in half by the expanding ring.

     Tsukune could feel the presence of both Mokas as the dream collapsed.  Suddenly, however, they pulled away from him.  He felt as if he had been forcibly stopped, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t move.  All that was around him was darkness, and he was alone.


	14. Waking Up

**Chapter 13**

**_Waking Up_ **

 

     “Pathetic.”

     Trying to push herself up on one trembling arm, Kurumu glared at Mori Retsu as he loomed over her.  She tried to swipe at his leg, but the motion overbalanced her, and she fell face down onto the floor.  Gritting her teeth as she heard him chuckle over her, she tried again to climb back to her feet to resume the fight.  The villain didn’t bother this time to give her the chance, turning away and walking back to Tsukune.

     “You should get up if you can, girls.  You wouldn’t want to miss what I do next.”  Mori Retsu raised his weapon as he neared the bier that the boy slept upon, aiming it vertically over Tsukune’s throat. “I’ll allow you to witness the moment that he is forever lost to you before I kill you both.  Is that not kindness?”

      “I won’t let you hurt him!” Hearing the new voice, Mori Retsu rolled his eyes in exasperation, only to pause in mid-turn a second later.  If that voice was Moka Akashiya, then did that mean…

     Surely enough, there stood the vampire, though still in her sealed state, all but a normal high school girl and certainly not a threat to him as long as she wore the rosario.  Still, for her to be awake meant that even she had escaped from the River Lethe, and thus the Key would be incomplete.  All that work, all that planning, wasted…

     “I can’t believe this.  He sacrificed himself for all of you?  What a hero.” The word dripped with acidic hatred. “Unfortunately, however, that means I’ll have to adapt my plans slightly.  You see, I needed your pain and anguish to feed my efforts, and since you’ve stubbornly resisted your union with that boy, I shall be forced to augment his despair somehow.”  He stepped away from the bed, looking at each girl in turn as they all climbed shakily to their feet. “Fortunately, dreams are not the only vehicle I have for inflicting pain, and physical agony should work just as well.  I may have to beat you all to death, but it should be just enough, I hope.”  His calm smile made his violent words all the more jarring, as did his mocking bow. “Shall we begin?”

     The sound was faint, but it pierced the room.  It was the sound of metal cracking and giving way, followed by the sound of pouring sand.

      Everyone turned to look at the bed as the whip-crack of a strap giving way sounded.  As they watched, Tsukune’s right hand lifted from the bed, pointing upwards.  Around his wrist dangled the Holy Lock, which was gradually becoming visible as the black sand that had coated it fell away from it in a steady rush.  Another link in the chain had cracked, his friends noticed, and when his eyes opened, they were crimson.

     Mori Retsu took one step towards Tsukune before falling to his knees.  He felt drained, emptied.  He had spent much of his personal reserves manipulating the dreams of the girls before they had first come to challenge him, and had been forced to rely upon the purified energy he gained through Tsukune’s connection to them ever since.  If Tsukune had awoken, then that meant that his power source was gone, and his plans had been wiped away.  He no longer had time to tarry. “You die first,” he snarled, looking up to see Tsukune standing before him, having freed himself from the bed’s restraints.  The boy’s crimson eyes met his for just a moment, and then Tsukune was gone in a blur.

     Mori Retsu whirled to see Tsukune standing across the room, directly in front of Moka. “I’m sorry, guys,” he said quietly, glancing to Mizore and Kurumu. “I have a lot to answer for, I know.  But let’s finish this guy first.” The girls nodded to him, having felt invigorated the very moment that Retsu had collapsed.  Tsukune smiled gently at Moka, reaching up to her rosario. “Together, we can’t lose.”  He tugged downwards, and the chain holding the rosario gave way.

     “We shall see!” Mori Retsu roared, dashing at Tsukune’s back, scythe held with both hands and trailing to his left as he readied a vicious swing.  Before he could reach Tsukune, however, Mizore and Kurumu darted to his left and right respectively, their claws at the ready.  As the scythe arced towards Tsukune, it passed over a puddle of water left from Mizore’s attacks, which instantly surged upwards, freezing around the handle just below the blade.  As Retsu jerked to a stop, his momentum spun him to face Mizore, who offered him a cold smile.

     “Since you like pain so much…” Kurumu snarled, grabbing one of the ebon wings sprouting from the villains back with her right hand as she lifted her left hand high into the air.  Before he could pull free, she slashed downward.  Mori Retsu screamed in agony as the claws tore into the wing where it met his shoulder, ripping through the skin and grinding against bone.

     The ice gave way as he furiously threw himself around, and Kurumu’s agility only barely saved her from meeting the scythe’s blade as she leaped back from him.  The furious attack nearly brought Retsu around full circle, and he tensed to lunge at Kurumu, his muscles absorbing the weight of his swing and preparing to reverse it.  When the motion of his swing ended abruptly with the sound of wood slapping against flesh, Mori Retsu was caught off guard.  He glanced down, seeing the fingers wrapped around the handle of his scythe, and then up into the crimson eyes of Tsukune Aono.  His sneer faltered as he saw the iron resolution in Tsukune’s expression, and he didn’t even notice the fist coming at his face.

     As his face snapped around from the force of the blow, Mori Retsu’s vision blurred momentarily.  What was that figure he saw, that gleam of silver light, those white fangs?  What was that blur of motion arcing towards him?  What-

     Mori Retsu flew across the room to slam into the far wall with enough force to crack mortar and stone.  As Moka’s foot touched back to the ground, she smiled darkly at the crumpled villain. “You’re a slow learner.  How many times will I need to do that before you learn your place?”  Her friends gathered behind her, Tsukune still holding the scythe that had been ripped from Retsu’s hand. “Or are you done?”

     “Not… yet.”  Mori Retsu stood up from the wall, jerking slightly. “Not… ever.”  He only managed to rise halfway, and both his wings stood out from his back at twisted angles.  He chuckled, and his eyes lit with a crazed energy. “I shall have to handle things a bit more directly.”

     The four teens watched in fascinated horror as Retsu’s body began to shudder, and the crackling of bones sounded as his wings began to recede back into his body.  Though his form convulsed, the monster laughed all the while, all sanity wiped from his voice.  As the wings vanished, the villain’s skin began to change, darkening completely to black and taking on a grainy texture.  When it was finished, Mori Retsu straightened, admiring the back of his hand briefly before looking at his opponents with half-lidded eyes.   “I will enjoy this.”

     With that, he dashed at the four, his speed not what it had been while Tsukune slumbered but still hard to keep up with.  Moka stepped forward to meet his charge, body twisting as she prepared another devastating kick.  As she unleashed it, however, Retsu leaned back, further than should have been possible, sliding completely under the attack.  Before she could follow him, he was past her, in the middle of the group.

     Tsukune was his first target, and Retsu’s uppercut lifted him from the ground and spent him sprawling backwards.  Mizore swung at the monster’s head, but he ducked, elbowing her sharply in the stomach, the lollipop flying from her mouth.  He turned to face Kurumu, but the succubus had been quick to react, raking her claws downward upon his shoulder.

     The talons passed into and through the villain’s flesh with a soft rustle, but when Kurumu looked to see the damage she had inflicted, she saw no sign her attack had landed.  Mori Retsu’s gaze at her conveyed his amusement. “That doesn’t work anymore,” he noted, and lashed out with his fist.

     Moka took advantage of his distraction, dropping her heel onto his back, but again the strike was ineffective as her foot pressed into his body, only to come out again as the wound instantly repaired itself.  Her eyes widened as she realized the reason that he wasn’t injured: his clothes, his body, every part of him was now composed of the black sand that had coated Tsukune’s Holy Lock.  Every attack that landed simply passed through without effect.

     Mizore slashed the air with her frozen claws, and three spears of ice shot forth at the villain.  Mori Retsu turned to face them, and just before the projectiles reached him holes opened in his chest just wide enough for all three icicles to pass through without touching him, and then closed as they flew on across the room.  Kurumu lunged at his back, slashing twice with her claws, but he ignored her completely, glancing over as Moka kicked out again, aiming for his face.  Swiftly raising his hand, he caught her ankle before it could reach him, and offered her a brief smile in response to her growing concern.  His arm began to stretch, shooting upwards, and in his tight clutch Moka was lifted into the air by her foot.

      “So, tell me, Tsukune,” Mori Retsu said casually as his body began to blur at the edges, as if it were losing its cohesion. “Do you think you can choose now?”  He didn’t look over to where the boy had fallen, instead twisting as he whipped his arm at Kurumu.  Moka was carried along for the ride, and collided with her friend hard enough to send the succubus flying away.  Retsu didn’t release Moka, instead searching for Mizore. “It’s time, Tsukune!”  The snow girl tried to dodge aside, but again Moka was used as the tip of a whip of sand, knocking Mizore to the ground. “Tell me, which one of them do you choose… to die first?”

     “I won’t choose.”  Mori Retsu glanced down to see Tsukune Aono standing before him.  The red eyes rose to his, and a shudder passed through the monster as he realized what would come next.  He had no chance to move, no escape as Tsukune’s shoulders pivoted sharply.  Moka dropped limply to the floor as the villain tore his eyes away from Tsukune and looked down, at his own chest.

     At the blade of the scythe that was lodged there.

     “A good… guess.”  Mori Retsu winced as sand began to pour from the wound, like an hourglass that had been tipped over.  “You win this one, then.”  The flow of the sand increased, and the scythe itself dissolved into an ebon wave that fell onto the floor.  Mori Retsu slumped, as if he were melting. “But…”

     With a final hiss, Mori Retsu collapsed into a pile of black sand.  As the girls picked themselves up from the floor, even the sand began to fade away, and soon enough nothing remained to show that Mori Retsu had been there at all, save a familiar-looking crucifix.  The room was silent as the four friends looked at each other, smiling despite their bruises and exhaustion.

     They had won.      


	15. The Choice

**Chapter 14**

**_The Choice_ **

 

     “Tsukune!”

     Tsukune turned just in time for his face to be wedged tightly between Kurumu’s prodigious mounds, and her arms quickly wrapped around his neck, tightly holding him in place.  Despite the choking sounds he made, the succubus pressed herself against him tighter, not willing to let him escape.  “We were so worried, Tsukune!  You were asleep and you wouldn’t wake up and-”

     “Stop being so clingy, bazooka girl.”  A ball of ice slammed against the back of Kurumu’s head, and her grip relaxed as she slumped to the ground.  Gasping for breath, Tsukune looked up to see the shy smile of Mizore.  She reached into the front pocket of her sweater and drew forth a sucker to replace the one that had fallen during the fight.  Tsukune watched her unwrap it and lift it to her lips… her lips…

     Suddenly, the memories rushed in.  Every time he had returned to the vortex, he had forgotten what had happened in the other dreams, no doubt a measure intended by Retsu to insure each repeated nightmare stayed fresh and painful for them all.  Now, though, he could recall what had happened, how he and Mizore had… and how he had told Kurumu that…

     “Tsukune,” came the imperious voice beside him, and his blush vanished as he felt a surge of guilt and fear.  He turned to face the crimson-eyed vampire, surprised by the sly smile she offered him.  “You have something I need, badly.  Sorry.”

     “What do you…” Tsukune gasped as the vampire leaned towards him.  He felt the twin pains in his neck, and then everything began to feel slightly fuzzy as his knees threatened to give way.

     “Stop!  You’re drinking too much!” Kurumu yelped, tugging unsuccessfully at the vampire’s shoulder.

     “He’s turning pale…”

     With a satisfied gasp, Moka pulled away from his neck, wiping her lips with a wide gesture. “Thanks, Tsukune.  It’s not often that I… Tsukune?”

     The boy fell to the ground, twitching slightly.  As Moka stared down at him, confused, Mizore walked up to him and began prodding at his cheek with her finger, smiling in amused contentment.

     “I swear, you’re worse than the other Moka!  At least she-” Kurumu started, waving her arms at the vampire.  She paused as she saw the shock in the vampire’s eyes as Moka’s head jerked up and she stared past the succubus. “What’s wrong with-”

     “The fight has just ended, and after all that everything snaps back to normal?”  The four friends turned horrified eyes to the man standing behind Kurumu. “You all make me sick.”  Mori Retsu scowled at them, crossing his arms before his chest, the walls of the room vaguely visible through his form.

     “How?  Why are you still…” Tsukune blurted, unable to believe what he was seeing.  Could it be that they hadn’t defeated the villain after all?

     “Such idiocy.  Did you really believe that you could destroy me like that?” Mori Retsu shook his head, but his lips drew tight. “You did slay my physical manifestation, I admit.  You severed my connection to the waking world.  However, such measures are temporary at best; my true home is in dreams, and you cannot defeat me there.”

     “Then, we’ll still have the nightmares?  What do we have to do to be rid of you?” Kurumu demanded furiously.

     “No.  For now, your dreams are safe from me.” The four stared at him, shocked by his honesty. “It will take some time before I can regain enough power to exert any control over your dreams, despite the fact that I still maintain a connection to you.”  He spread his hands wide, shrugging. “Though, it’s only a matter of time.  I must thank you, though, for all the help that you will be giving me in the days to come, as I regain my power.”

     Tsukune felt a chill run down his back as he realized what Retsu was implying. “What do you mean?”

     Mori Retsu smiled at him, and the expression had all the twisted malice of a jovial torturer.  “I mean that, thanks to you, all of you, I shall be reborn.  Like the mythical phoenix, I shall rise again, and your pain shall be the ashes of my origin.”  He nodded to Tsukune. “I couldn’t have chosen a better focus for my efforts.  Even now, I sense the growing tension around you all.  You remember now, don’t you?” He gestured to Mizore. “Do you remember the kiss you shared with this girl?  Or your declaration of love for the succubus?” The girls stiffened, and Tsukune felt sweat begin to appear on his forehead.  “Have you learned nothing, Tsukune Aono?  Even now, you continue your game, drawing them to you and pushing them away, keeping them locked in a painful orbit around you.  For that, I thank you; it’s all too delicious.”  As the four watched, Mori Retsu began to fade away, but he offered them one final toothy grin. “See you soon.”

     As the threat hung in the air, Tsukune and the others paused to consider his words.  After all they suffered, it seemed that the villain was resolved to deny them the opportunity to enjoy all that they had worked for, the normality that they had dreamed of returning to.  Tsukune reflected on the nightmares he had witnessed, and the conflict that had hinged entirely on his actions and desires.  It was true, he knew; returning to the way that it had been, the life they had been leading, would just lead back to the same problems.  But, what could he do to fix the problem?

     “K…k…k…” Kurumu whirled on Mizore, face turning red. “He _kissed_ you?”

     Mizore blushed brightly, looking away without response, as the succubus took a threatening step forward.  Moka grabbed Kurumu’s shoulder to restrain her even as she stared at Tsukune.  The time had come, then.  She had warned him it would come to this some day.  Still, things had changed since then, and she no longer had faith that she could predict the path Tsukune would choose.

     Tsukune’s head lowered as he felt the weight of his deeds press upon him.  He had known for a long time that he was in love with Moka Akashiya, but their burgeoning romance had always been stifled by the presence of the other girls, who had their own stakes in insuring that he kept his distance from the vampire.  Though he had tried to confess his love for Moka, and believed that she felt the same for him, there had always been an interruption, a distraction, something to pull them apart. 

     Now, however, things had grown even more complicated.  Watching the dreams of Mizore and Kurumu had made him realize how deeply they cared for him, and he had been surprised to realize that their devotion was not one-sided.  He did love both of them, as friends but also something more.  If he had never met the others, he knew it would have been likely that he would have been more than happy with any of them.  Briefly images of what that may have been like flashed through his head: eating lunch alone with Mizore, studying with Kurumu, leaving the academy with one of them by his side…

     He flushed guiltily, but was surprised at how simultaneously pleasant and wrong those futures felt.  He would have been happy, true… but compared to his life with all of them, it felt hollow.  Would that be what the future felt like, even if he had Moka beside him?  Would he always feel lonely, incomplete?  And, if he did choose, was it too late to hope that he could maintain those friendships… or had his inaction ruined that possibility?

     He was torn from his reverie as Moka walked past him, bending over to pick up the rosario from where he had dropped it at the start of the fight.  Straightening, the vampire turned to face him, holding the crucifix before her. “Something tells me that I’m not the Moka you will need for this,” she said quietly, and met his gaze firmly. “But the decision is yours.  This is one fight I won’t help you with.”  Stepping up to him, she replaced the rosario at her neck, and with a shimmer she returned to her normal state.  As she did so, she slumped forward, her exhaustion returning as her supernatural strength departed, and Tsukune moved forward to catch her.

     Behind them, Mizore and Kurumu watched them.  Sharing a glance of dark resolution, they both acknowledged the only path before them.  It was the only way that they could be sure that Mori Retsu wouldn’t return to haunt them again, and the only way that they could see to escape the inevitably of being rejected.  It was the only way that Tsukune would be happy.

     Moka’s eyes opened, revealing their emerald color, and she smiled up at Tsukune.  He returned the expression as he helped her regain her footing, overjoyed to be reunited with the side of her personality he felt more comfortable with.  His relief quickly faded, as did the happiness on Moka’s face as she watched the change in his eyes.  “What’s wrong, Tsukune?” she asked, but he didn’t answer, replying only with a melancholy smile.

     “Tsukune.”  Moka stepped away from the boy, and they both turned to look at Mizore and Kurumu.  The two girls were standing beside each other, their expressions resolute though their eyes were turned to the sides, unwilling to meet those of either Tsukune or Moka.  Moka felt fear rise up within her at the grave seriousness she felt from the other girls, and a glance over at Tsukune revealed that he felt it too, his lips tight and his expression pained.

     “Tsukune… Moka… we wanted to say that, from now on… we won’t interfere any more.  We wish you all the happiness that we know you deserve, and… and…” Kurumu looked over to Mizore, desperate for help.

     “And we want you to know that we’ll always be your… friends.”  Mizore tried to hide the pain she felt at the final word, but wasn’t quite successful.

     “Wait, what do you mean?” Moka demanded, unable to believe what the two were implying.  She had always wanted to have Tsukune to herself, and knew that they would have been able to focus on their relationship a lot more without the constant interference, but still this felt too sudden, too empty, too… sad.  She remembered what she had felt when her inner self had touched the orb that had held Kurumu’s essence during the fight with Mori Retsu, and those deep and desperate emotions were nothing like the grim certainty she saw on her friend’s face now.

     Kurumu finally met her eyes, and for a moment anger crossed her face. “I mean, we quit!  This isn’t just about what Retsu said, this is about everything!  I’m tired of waiting for Tsukune!  I’m tired of watching him chase after you, even though either of us wouldn’t hesitate to take him if he’d so much as glance at us with half the dedication he shows you!  I’m tired of begging for the scraps you leave behind!”  The succubus turned her head sharply. “You can keep him, Moka Akashiya.  I, we, don’t want him any more.”

     “You’re lying.” The vampire saw both girls flinch at her words.

     “Only about the last part,” Mizore whispered softly, and her grimace showed she felt the same way.

     “So, we’re going to just… move on.  We’ll all be happier this way.” Kurumu fought to offer the lie with a straight face. “Things will be back to normal in no time, and you two can be happy together.”

     “I won’t let you two do this just-” Moka’s angered cry was cut off by a single word from Tsukune.

     “No.”

     All three girls froze, looking at him in trepidation.  When he raised his head from the floor, the agony he was suffering was obvious. “All of this is my fault.  I’m the one responsible for hurting you all, and for making you fight each other.  I do care about all of you, too much for that solution to work.  I couldn’t bear to know that my happiness came at the price of your pain, any of you.”  He smiled at each of them in turn, and they were shocked at the fatalistic calm he displayed. “So, there’s only one thing I can do to fix it.  Tomorrow, I’ll go to the Headmaster with a letter of withdrawal and-”

     “Idiot!” Tsukune stopped, shocked by the look of indignant rage on Kurumu’s face. “Then none of us will be happy!  All of this will have been for nothing!”

     “Running away is what got you into this in the first place,” Mizore pointed out calmly.

     “Then, what am I supposed to do?  I can’t choose, not now, not after everything I’ve seen and felt!” He looked at each girl, eyes pleading for help.  “What am I supposed to do?  I can’t choose one of you, I can’t choose none of you, and I can’t choose all of you!”

     All three girls recoiled from the final suggestion as silence fell over the group.  For a long moment, they stared at him in horrified surprise, but as cold pragmatism began to trickle into their minds, they turned to each other slowly, weighing each other’s expressions with all the exact science that years of friendship can provide.  Had Tsukune looked up from his own misery, he might have been frightened at the silent agreement that the trio were coming to.

     Moka was the first to move, leaving Tsukune’s side and marching over to the other girls.  As he watched in confusion, she pulled them away from him, to the other side of the room, where they huddled together and began whispering, often motioning in his direction.  Befuddlement waged war with growing annoyance in his mind as he wondered why he had been excluded from the conversation, which he so obviously featured prominently in.  Curiosity took over, and he edged forward, straining to catch parts of the debate.     

     “It wouldn’t be perfect, but…”

     “Think of it as taking it a step further…”

     “…what will Tsukune…”

     “He’s responsible for this, he can go along with whatever we…”

     Gulping loudly, Tsukune scooted closer, turning an ear towards the group.

     “…are you sure you’re willing to do this, Moka?  You’ve got the most to lose…”

     “I’ll never be sure if I don’t…”

     “As long as I get a fair shot, then I’ll be…”

     “… and no hurt feelings, whoever wins!”

     “Yeah, right.  But, it’s the best solution for now…”

    “….everything, right back to the way it was, except that this time…”

     When all three girls turned back to Tsukune, eyes darkly gleaming, he couldn’t restrain a yelp of fear.  They walked towards him, too slowly, and their smiles made him want to flee, quickly.  Receiving a nod from the other two, Kurumu again took the lead, and stabbed a finger in his direction.  “Since you can’t make up your mind, Tsukune Aono… we’ve done it for you!”

     Tsukune chuckled weakly, feeling the sweat drip down his back.  “Well, I don’t know if-”

     “Mizore and I hereby rescind our offers to give you over to Moka!”  Tsukune couldn’t hide his guilty flash of relief and pleasure at those words, and Kurumu’s smile grew all the wider. “Instead of declaring a truce… we’ve changed the rules of our war for love!”

     “Wh...what?”

     Mizore stepped forward to answer him.  “We’ve figured out that the reason that none of us could succeed in winning you over completely was that we kept interfering with each other.  If we all agreed to back off a little and let you have some time with each of us, then maybe you could finally decide on your own.  And, anyways, this gives each of us equal footing, so when you do choose, none of us can say it wasn’t fair.” Mizore smiled at him, pulling the sucker from her lips, and the hunger in her expression made him shiver. “And anyways, I certainly wouldn’t mind having some time alone with you…”          

     “This way, no one has to leave, and at the same time we can each have a little of what we want.” Moka gave him a genuine smile of relief. “I know it’s not perfect, Tsukune, but for now… it doesn’t have to be.”

     Tsukune couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  To think that they were still willing to tolerate him, after all that he had done, or not done… that they could still trust him with their emotions… He looked at them closely, and saw the hope in their eyes.  If they were willing to trust him so completely, how could he let them down?

     Briefly, he wondered what the future would be like, and what form these new ‘rules’ would take.  He couldn’t help being afraid of what he knew would come of this agreement: more chaos, more conflict, more panic.  Still… all of that didn’t really matter.  It would be better than anything else he could have asked for, and certainly more than he could have expected.  It was the only way that they could go forward without constantly being reminded of what they were leaving behind, and the only way that they could all still be together, and happy.

     That was all that mattered. 

     Tsukune Aono nodded, smiling brightly at the three girls who loved him. “Sounds good to me.”

     No one would ever know who won the race to reach him first, but whoever won, Tsukune lost.  Groaning up from the bottom of a pile of bodies, he couldn’t help but smile, until someone’s elbow dug into his stomach. “Ouch!  Get off, just for a second, please…”

     “I got here first!  He’s mine!” Kurumu declared, her chest eclipsing Tsukune’s vision and threatening to cut off his air supply.  The sound of ice forming was the only warning before the succubus yelped in pain, throwing herself off of Tsukune as she grabbed her wounded rear. “How dare you!  Come on, snowflake, let go of him and face me!”

     Mizore nuzzled Tsukune’s side a final time before rising to the challenge, facing Kurumu as her other hand sprouted ice to match the one that had poked her friend. “Even if you choke him with those lumps, it won’t change the fact that Tsukune prefers me.  After all…”  Mizore touched her blushing cheeks with her frozen fingers. “The kiss we shared was so passionate, so-”

     “That was in a dream, it doesn’t count!”  Kurumu glowered at the snow maiden. “Anyways, he would have kissed me, if the dream hadn’t ended, I know it!”

     Tsukune watched the two bicker for a moment before glancing down at Moka, who was still clutching to his chest.  She smiled up at him, contented, and he shared that sentiment.  She had been right: it wasn’t perfect, but for now all of them were happy.

     “That does it!  Tsukune, kiss me!  And you two can’t interfere, you promised!”

     “Well, if you can do that, then I can do this…”

      “H-hey!”   

      It was good enough.  

 

******

 

     Though the four friends were too distracted to hear the faint echo, a ghostly scream of frustration, the two men watching over them from the observation balcony did, and both chuckled quietly.

     “Heh.  The boy doesn’t realize how close he came to losing that one, does he?”

     The Headmaster turned from his viewing point in the shadows over the four, offering the speaker a sharp smile. “No, and perhaps it’s best this way.”

     The other man paused to puff on his ever-burning cigar, eyeing Tsukune with almost sadistic eagerness.  “It’s funny, really.  Retsu had it all planned out: even if they managed to defeat him here, by forcing the boy’s hand, no matter what happened at least two of those girls would walk away absolutely devastated.  He wanted to consume all that pain, figuring that would give him the boost he needed to reach the next step in his plan immediately.”  The bus driver grinned and tipped his cigar in the direction of Tsukune and his friends. “I bet he didn’t foresee this ending.”

     “No, and I believe that works to our advantage.  Though he hasn’t been entirely exorcised from this school, he is too weak to manifest once again, and until we can find his phylactery we can’t seal him again.”  The Headmaster’s eerie smile grew even more. “I know that he maintains a connection to the emotions of Tsukune and his friends.  Perhaps we could use this against him?  We would need to send those four away from the school, keep them safe for a while until Retsu’s powers are sufficiently diminished.”

     The bus driver mirrored the other man’s smile before turning back to watch the four teenagers below. “You get past one looming disaster, only to throw yourself at another.  I hope you’re ready for all of this, boy.”

     The pair of men shared a quiet laugh, but none of the four below noticed over the sound of their own deliberations. To their great pleasure and relief, they all had something far, far more important, more pleasant, to consider.

     Their shared future.              


	16. Memento Mori

**Epilogue**

**_Memento Mori_ **

  
     “That will be all.  You are dismissed.”

     The black-suited messenger bowed deeply to the man behind the desk, the dark sunglasses he wore serving well to hide the relief he felt at leaving the opulent office unscathed.  It was never good to be the bearer of bad news, and especially not when that news had to be delivered to one of the leaders of an organization as powerful as Fairy Tale.  Shivering at the memory of those dark, dead eyes, the messenger hurried on, eager to escape far away in case that man decided to change his mind.

     Inside the office, the man leaned back in his leather chair, face held calmly composed as he closed his eyes.  After a moment he reached into the air and snapped his fingers loudly before sliding forward to pull a sheath of papers from one of the perfectly organized stacks on the antique mahogany desk.  He rotated the chair around to face the broad windows behind him, but paid no mind to the city skyline that he overlooked, instead scanning one page after another rapidly.

     A moment later, soft footsteps presaged the woman’s arrival, and she knelt at his side, holding the silver tray aloft.  He glanced briefly at her, at the immaculately-arranged light hair, the unblemished dusky skin, the white evening gown.  His finger hooked one of the steaming cups from the tray she bore.  “Thank you, Kahlua,” he said coldly, dismissing her before sipping the tea he held.  It was perfect, as he had expected.

     His mind returned to the matter at hand.  So, Morpheus had failed in his plan to unleash the inhabitants of the Yokai Academy on the human world, and Tsukune Aono and all of his friends had survived once again.  It was unfortunate, as that particular plan had been very expensive and difficult to arrange, and had put them in danger of acquiring a very dangerous enemy.  Chiefly regrettable was the loss of the copy of the Headmaster’s magic talisman; that artifact had removed one of their best agents from service for some time, as Hokuto had barely survived the process of drawing its energy signature from him after his short exposure to it.

     Still, there had been no word that Tsukune or the forces of the Headmaster had located the Thanatos Phylactery, which meant that Morpheus would still be an active instrument for a time being.  That would serve to distract many of the school’s powers while his embedded agents searched for the phylactery.  If they could find that, they would have a means of ensuring the continued cooperation of Morpheus.

     However… despite all of the intelligence and resources they had devoted to Morpheus, he had proved a disappointment.  If anything, he had at least drawn the Hell-King’s attention away from Fairy Tale, but questions would be raised about the presence of the counterfeit talisman, and it would be possible that it could be traced back to them.  If so, Morpheus’ failure had suddenly become a liability.

     And Miyabi Fujusaki had no stomach for either failures or liabilities.

     However, there was another possibility, a means to exploit the situation that could go a long way towards returning their plans to their original course.  It would, of course, break the compact they had made with Morpheus, but it could be argued that his failure had already done that.  If Fairy Tale couldn’t get their money’s worth from his efforts, then they would do so at his expense.

     Smiling coldly, he turned back to his desk and reached out to the phone there, picking up the receiver and stabbing at one of the buttons that covered the surface of the base.  Lifting the phone to his ear, he momentarily regretted that his actions would rely upon the behavior of an extremely dangerous person, one they had little control over.  Still, risks are often necessary for profit, he knew.

     Not bothering with a greeting, he immediately began giving orders the moment he heard the other end pick up. “The person you have been tracking.  I want you to contact him, using all due caution; preferably, send someone expendable.  I want you to make him an offer, should he be willing to assist us with just one job.”

     Miyabi could hear the fear in the other man’s voice, but, though it was justified, it didn’t truly matter.  He knew just the way to get that person’s attention.  

     “Yes.  Tell him that we have located his soul.”  

     Miyabi Fujusaki returned the phone to its base, and turned to face the skyline as dusk began to fall over the city.  He smiled as he held the tea up to his lips, inhaling deeply.  It wouldn’t be long now, until the day came that he watched the whole world burn.          

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: My thanks to you for reading "Out of Nightmares." I hope you enjoyed this first story in my series, and I humbly entreat you to comment; I take compliments, questions, and criticism, all with an open mind and gratitude.
> 
> As is my habit, I save an explanation for original character names for the last author's note, to avoid any spoilers. When it comes to naming new characters, I often find myself stumped until I succumb to my innate preference for puns and mythological references. So it was with the name of Mori Retsu. My starting point is his true name, Morpheus, along with the notion of the River Lethe, the river of forgetfulness, which I had already decided to use in my tale. By essentially throwing Japanese syllables at those two words, I started to form a vague notion of what would be possible. 'Retsu,' for example, carries violent connotations, which fit my plans perfectly, and often in this manga the last names have a certain significance anyways.
> 
> The name 'Mori' quickly stuck to me, mostly because of the potential pun. Starting from Morpheus, I stumbled onto those syllables, but to be honest have no idea what it would be connected to in Japanese. However, I recalled that Mori is Latin for death, and since in the original mythology Morpheus was, I believe, the nephew of a god of death (Thanatos), I decided to go with it. Not to spoil anything, but don't expect that uncle-nephew will be the relationship between those two characters in my story…
> 
> I apologize for my brutal mistreatment of the Japanese language, in this occasion and any other. However, I also remember how English is often used in anime… and I feel much better, actually.
> 
> Anyways, I bid you farewell. I will return soon with the second, sappy tale in this series, but, until then... I sleep.  
> ~Wynn Pendragon


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